Soul Drinker
by solitaryloner
Summary: Gumo had never been what you could call normal. He could predict when people were going to die, though no one knows about his ability. But one day, he met someone even stranger than he was - strange, because...this girl should be dead. She was supposed to be dead. The black ring around her neck stated so. Why was she still alive, and what did she want from Gumo? GumoXMiku.
1. Chapter 1

Gumo stared intently into the mirror, tilting his head so that he could see his neck. All he saw was pale skin, unmarked and flawless, and he exhaled in relief. There wasn't anything there - he always feared that one day, _it _might appear around his neck. That cursed ring.

Turning away from the mirror and his reflection, he shrugged into his school uniform - simple white, long-sleeved shirt, black and white tie, black pants. Tugging on his red and black school jacket, he cast one last look into the mirror. Emerald eyes stared right back at him - emerald eyes which looked no different from the eyes of any other person.

But they were different. Though no one was ever able to tell, his eyes were different - and he could never tell anyone in what way he was unique from others. People would never believe him. They all thought he was delusional.

Shouldering his black school bag, he ran his fingers through his light hair, the colour of a spring meadow. His green hair was unique, and he didn't like the way it stood out from the crowd. But he didn't dye it, because it was the same colour as his mother's hair.

The mother who had died simply because he had told her she was going to. Gumo gritted his teeth - he really hated the way he could see things. His predictions of death always came true, and that annoyed the hell out of him.

It was a heavy burden, to know who was about to die soon. And it was a burden he had no choice but to shoulder, alone. When he had seen the faint grey ring around his mother's neck, he had warned her - and she had thought that her beloved son was hallucinating. She hadn't believed his warning, that soon she would die. That the ring...the ring was an ominous warning of what was about to come.

The ring foretold death, and no one he had ever seen was able to escape the demise the grey rings around their necks foretold. He had been able to see the rings ever since he was young, and initially he had wondered how was it that only _he _could see them and no one else could. Even now, he still didn't know.

He had told his parents, but they hadn't believed him. Even from young, he had known that the rings were bad, that when they appeared bad things were going to happen. No one believed him about the rings, though, and over time he had learnt to just shut up.

As he grew older, he realised what was so 'bad' about the rings. _The grey rings around people's necks...they only appear when that person is about to die. _He had found out after he had seen the ring appear on his cousin's neck. The ring had darkened, day by day, and when it was a dark shade of grey he had been run over by a car and killed. He had died.

Gumo had went to his dead cousin's funeral, and then he saw that the ring around the corpse's neck was pure, jet-black. It was then that he realised, the deaths were linked to the rings. The darker they were, the closer they were to dying - and after one's demise, the grey would darken into a pure, inescapable black.

Gumo had seen the same ring form around his mother's neck, a couple of years ago...when he had been thirteen. Five years ago. And his mother had not believed in his words - she had even wanted to take him to see a doctor. His father hadn't believed his warnings either.

Gumo had watched, helpless, as day by day, the ring darkened slowly, becoming nearer and nearer to deadly black. And then one day, his mother was caught in a robbery, at a bank...and she had been one of those who had been killed by the robbers. The ring around her neck, when Gumo next saw her body in the morgue, had been that familiar dreaded, hateful black.

His father had believed him, after that. He had no choice but to do so - but at the same time, his father couldn't stand to look at Gumo anymore. Which was why Gumo had dropped his last name - because he hadn't wanted anything more to do with his father, either.

His father still provided him with food and shelter, but the father-son bond between them was gone. Ever since his father had found out that his son was...different, his father had turned cold and distant. And to be honest, Gumo didn't care - he didn't need his father's love.

So long as he was allowed to do his own thing, he was fine with anything. Sighing, he walked out of his room, down the stairs, and out of the house where so many memories of his past haunted him. Where his memories all refused to let go, demanding to be heard.

His father had removed every last bit of his mother's presence from their house. It was as though his mother had never once existed. But no matter what Gumo's father did, both of them knew that she would still live in their memories - and his father would never forget how he and his wife had dismissed their son's warning.

Gumo knew his father felt guilty for his wife's death. Gumo himself had felt guilty for his mother's death - but there was no point in blaming himself, or anyone else. The deaths always came to pass - even if they had believed him, nothing could have been done.

It was impossible to change one's destiny. Fate was set in stone, and their deaths were all pre-determined. They could never run away - Death would never let anyone flee its cold embrace.

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Gumo ran into Len Kagamine and Kaito Shion on the way to school. They were his friends, and he fell into their group easily, laughing and pretending that he had not a care in the world. Just like they did. Discreetly, he glanced at their necks, and exhaled in relief when he saw that they were unmarked. As usual.

He always felt terrible, whenever he saw one of his schoolmates with a grey ring around their necks. Like Gakuko Kamui. She was a pretty girl in his level, and last week a grey ring had appeared around her neck. Gumo had avoided her ever since - he didn't want to be reminded that she would die, very soon.

Gakuko was still so full of life, still so vibrant. Looking at her now, laughing with her friends at the other end of the bus, it was hard to imagine her lying cold and lifeless. The ring was darker now, and Gumo knew it would be just a matter of time before death arrived to claim her. How was she going to die?

Nothing he did would change the fact that she would soon die. Looking around the bus, he saw one or two of the passengers - they, too, had grey rings encircling their necks, like a deadly promise. These strangers that he didn't know, people without a name...they would die soon, but he couldn't do anything to change that.

He was nothing but a messenger, a lonely messenger sending warnings to no one but himself. He hadn't met anyone else who could see these rings, like he could - he didn't know of anyone he could share his heavy burden with.

''Hey, Gumo?'' Len snapped his fingers in front of Gumo's face, causing him to blink. ''You spaced out for a while there,'' Len said, concerned. He was a relaxed, easy-going blonde who tied his hair up into a short ponytail. His light blue eyes were curious. ''Are you okay?''

''Yeah, it's not like you to just trance like that,''' Kaito added, sounding curious. Kaito was tall, with shaggy navy hair and eyes a shade darker than Len's. Both he and Len were casual and fun-loving, but they cared for their friends. Popularity didn't change them at all.

Gumo hoped that he would never have to suffer seeing them with rings around their necks. He couldn't stand the thought of his two best friends dying. Couldn't stand ever knowing that they would soon die, and not being able to do anything to change that fact. ''I'm fine.''

Len and Kaito stared at him, wonderment and suspicion in their eyes. Slowly, they nodded. ''Well...then what do you think?'' Len asked.

Gumo blinked again, wondering what they had been talking about while he had been thinking of death. ''Excuse me? I wasn't listening.''

Len sighed. ''There's a new girl coming, I heard. There are rumours about her - you know about the nasty aeroplane crash two weeks ago, the one where everyone had died?''

Gumo nodded hesitantly. The plane had been flying across the sea, to this place as a transit flight. No one knew what had happened to the plane, but the pilot had apparently lost control and the plane had plummeted, straight down into the ocean. There had been no survivors.

''Well, apparently, one of the bodies they retrieved still had a heartbeat. She was still alive. They revived her - and she was perfectly fine! Completely unharmed. This girl was the only survivor of the accident...''

''And she's coming to our school,'' Kaito took over. ''Her name's Miku Hatsune - it keeps appearing in the newspapers, since she's the only one who survived the crash. They're hoping that she can provide clues as to what happened to the plane, why it suddenly malfunctioned like that. And of course, people wonder why she was the only survivor when everyone else on board had perished.''

Gumo's eyes widened. ''Really? She's coming to our school?'' he tilted his head, thinking of the girl. Miku Hatsune. He had seen her picture in the news, and had read the article through just once. Gumo wasn't interested in news, most of the time. He vaguely recalled reading about her being the only survivor of the crash, before.

Newspapers said that she was a miracle. That she had managed to survive, out in the icy sea, for several hours - six, was it? - before help had arrived. The girl had apparently clung on to a broken piece of the plane's wing, hanging on tight even after she had passed out.

''I wonder what it's like, to have a near-death experience?'' Len mused. ''Not that I would ask her, of course...I heard her entire family perished in the crash. Her parents and her elder brother. She was really the only survivor...''

Gumo kept quiet as Len and Kaito began to discuss the accident. Mainly because he had no idea what they were talking about, since he tended not to follow the news - but also because he was thinking deeply.

Was she different? Did having a near-death make her any different from the rest of them? Was it possible that this girl...might have the same kind of abilities he had? The ability to foretell when someone was about to die?

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The new girl was going to be in his class, Gumo found out. Their teacher had announced it right before class had started. But the new girl hadn't come in during first period, which had started the whole class abuzz with talk and speculation - what would she be like?

The new girl apparently lived with a guardian, around the school area. No one, not even the press, knew who the guardian was. After spending a day in the hospital to recuperate from her minor flesh injuries, the girl had mysteriously disappeared - and there had been much going on about her, ever since.

And now, she was entering his school. Gumo wondered what she would be like. Would this near-death experience affect her personality? Would she become like one of those gothic emo kids who cut themselves and composed depressing poetry? Gumo shook his head - no, he was being stereotypical here.

He couldn't compare her like that, anyway. Scarcely anything was known about the girl - no one had ever met her before. She had spent the past two weeks hiding with her guardian, apparently. And no one knew what she was like. Gumo only knew what she looked like because of a picture in the newspapers.

And that picture hadn't even been of her, after the crash. It was an old picture, taken long before the crash. The government had prevented the press from publishing anything involving the miracle survivor, other than her name and her age - eighteen. And the fact that she was now an orphan.

Gumo knew that she had teal hair, though. And vivid emerald eyes, eyes that were a lot like his. She had sparkled with youthfulness and vibrancy, in her photo - he wondered whether she would still be the same, after the accident. How would such an experience affect her?

It was after lunch now, and Gumo was back in class, stifling the urge to sleep. Everyone was still talking, though he sat in the back, trying hard not to fall asleep. He was always sleepy after lunch, though he didn't know why.

The door creaked open then, and everyone quieted, thinking it was the teacher. Gumo propped his head up on his hand sleepily, dreading having to pay attention to class.

But it wasn't the teacher. It was an unfamiliar girl - the new girl. A startlingly lovely, delicate girl with unnaturally long teal hair. Her hair reached all the way to the back of her knees.

The class remained quiet, staring in awe at this miracle girl. She walked into the class, followed by their teacher, and she walked until she was next to the teacher's desk. Their teacher sat down at the desk, looking calm and composed. Gumo blinked - this all felt strangely surreal.

''Class? This is Miku Hatsune, your new classmate,'' she waved at Miku. ''Miku, dear? Why don't you introduce yourself a little?''

Miku glanced at her, nodded, then faced the class. Gumo took her in - teal hair, fair skin, emerald eyes, ruby red lips. She was really lovely, and he found that he was strangely attracted to her. He couldn't bring himself to tear his eyes away from her face.

''I'm Miku,'' she started, and he jerked. Her voice...he knew that voice. Somehow. Somewhere, he had heard it before - he would never be able to forget that sweet, tuneful melody. Her voice was enrapturing. ''Nice to meet you all. But please...don't ask me anything about the accident. I can't tell you anything.''

With that, she walked to the only empty seat in class - the one two seats away from his, on his right. Gumo swallowed as he watched her sit, still unable to remove his eyes from her.

The class began to buzz, whispering about her, until the teacher shushed them, telling them to flip open their textbooks. Gumo did so absent-mindedly, turning to the instructed page.

Once again, he turned his head to stare at Miku Hatsune. But this time, his eyes widened in shock - he saw something, something he hadn't been able to see earlier as she had been too far, at the front of the class. He swallowed, suddenly nervous. Miku's head snapped around as he fidgeted, her eyes clashing with his.

Her eyes were knowing, somehow. Like she knew that he was nervous - like she knew exactly what it was, that he had seen. Gumo quickly averted his gaze, his heart thudding rapidly in his chest. What did this mean?

Her neck...there was a ring around her neck. And the ring wasn't grey - instead, it was a dark shade of pure, untainted jet-black.


	2. Chapter 2

_Who are you...?_

Gumo couldn't keep his mind off the new girl. That ring around her neck. It was black...pure black. She wasn't supposed to be here - the rings turned black only after death. Did this mean...she had managed to cheat death? Or did it mean something else entirely?

Again, he shot the girl a wary glance. She was listening to the teacher as he lectured, and she didn't notice the way he kept looking at her. His eyes strayed to her neck, and he winced - the black ring was still there, a stark contrast against the pale skin of her neck.

Who was she? What was she? Someone who had evaded the cold fingers of death? If so, how had she managed to do it? He wanted to know. If there really was a way to avoid one's demise, then...he might actually be able to help those he knew were about to die. Like Gakuko. The ring around her neck was darkening, and he knew that soon she was going to die.

If there was a way to escape their fate...then what was it? He jerked up, startled, as the boy next to him passed him a note. Blinking at the piece of paper, he stared at the short, simple message which was written on it - the handwriting was unfamiliar, but it was endearingly childish. So childish that it didn't match the message it spelled out.

_I know you're wondering about me. I'm curious about you too, Gumo. Do you wish to know how to evade your demise? Then meet me after school, outside the school library. We need to have a little talk._

He dropped the note, and it fluttered to the floor, white against the grey cement of the ground. His heart was thundering in his chest - how had she known? His eyes went to the girl, sitting two seats away from him.

She was still staring at the teacher, but when he turned to look at her, her emerald eyes slid over to meet him. Her lips curved up into a small smile, beckoning and mysterious. She tipped her head a little, towards the note that he had dropped on the floor.

Gumo wondered. Should he go? This girl was mysterious, and he didn't know what her intentions were - but that was another reason why he found her so fascinating, why he was so strangely drawn to her. And if she could tell him more about what she had done...if she told him how was it she knew about him, then perhaps his questions would all be answered.

Making up his mind, he nodded his head, an almost imperceptible movement. Her small smile widened slightly, and her forest green gaze once again returned to the front.

Gumo found that he couldn't concentrate for the rest of the lesson. He was distracted, constantly thinking about the girl and what she might possibly want from him. Could she see the black rings, just like he could? Or was it...something else? Something that he would not be able to comprehend? It was all so puzzling.

His eyes flicked to Miku Hatsune once more. He couldn't seem to prevent himself from looking at her, every once in a while. This time, she met his gaze, and her eyes were filled with...knowing intent. Hastily, he glanced away from her, avoiding the knowledge in those eyes.

What did this miracle girl want from him?

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So now, Gumo found himself waiting outside the school library. Classes had just ended, and he had immediately made his way over to where she had told him to meet her. He leant against the wall, waiting...she still hadn't shown up.

Faintly annoyed, he toyed with the idea of leaving and just going home. Blowing up, he watched the few strands of green hair that were falling into his eyes flutter. His hair was getting long again - he wondered how long more it would be before his father noticed and insisted that he cut his hair.

Not that Gumo ever paid his father any attention, anyway. He glanced at his watch - it had been ten minutes since school had ended, and Miku Hatsune still hadn't shown up. She was the one who had arranged to meet him, yet she was the late one...it was irritating.

Whatever it was she had to talk to him about, it could wait until tomorrow. Aggravated, he turned and walked away, slinging the strap of his bag further up his shoulder.

''I was wondering when you'd finally leave,'' a voice whispered next to him, and he jerked, startled. From out of nowhere, the girl had mysteriously appeared, and she was standing next to him, looking faintly amused.

''Where did you come from?'' he asked, glancing back at the library. He could swear that she hadn't been anywhere near the library just now...her blood red lips tilted up into a knowing smirk, and she shrugged, looking away from him. Her hands drifted to her neck, caressing the ring of black encircling the pale skin.

''The library,'' she said simply, as an explanation - and it only served to confuse him further. Her emerald eyes snapped back to meet his, and then swiftly, before he had time to react, her hand shot out, grabbing his wrist. He didn't resist as she pulled his hand to her neck.

''You can see this, can't you?'' she whispered, casting a wary glance around to ensure that no one was listening. Gumo swallowed, his hand shooting back, away from the cool skin.

Slowly, hesitantly, he nodded. _How does she know that I can see the ring? How does she even know about the ring, to begin with?_

Her eyelids lowered, thick eyelashes brushing against her cheeks. ''Good. Then my suspicions about you are right...'' She shot him a look. ''There are too many people around to talk about this. Let's go somewhere else, somewhere more private. Where there won't be any irritating eavesdroppers around.''

Before he could blink, she had latched on to his arm, and then she was dragging him away. She was a lot stronger than her petite frame implied, and for some reason he found that he didn't want to resist against her hold. Still, she was a stranger, someone he barely even knew, and he shouldn't allow her to lead him like that. Even if he was intrigued by her.

He tugged his arm away from her vice-like grip, and she turned to stare at him, startled. He felt his lips tilt up into a grim smile, ignoring the stares of the surrounding students. ''Why should I follow you?'' he hissed. ''I don't know you at all! What do you want from me?''

She cocked her head, her full lips setting into a satisfied smile. To be frank, that smile unnerved him a little. ''Because you want to know why you're special. Why you can see this,'' she waved at her neck, ''while no one else can. Isn't that why you agreed to meet me? Don't you want to know what happens after your death, Gumo?'' she whispered, so softly he almost missed it. He blinked at her, shocked.

He had noticed from the note that she knew his name...but how did she know it? He had not given her his name. And he doubted anyone else had given it to her either - she hadn't talked to anyone during class, not that he had noticed. ''How do you know my name?''

A knowing glint flashed through her eyes. ''I know many things, Gumo. I've been to Hell and back. I've _died,_'' she purred, ignoring the widening of his eyes. ''Yet here I am. You know that I died, don't you? The ring around my neck? The black ring which indicates my death?''

She tilted her head, giving him a better view. And, as stark as ever, the ink black ring caught his eye, the anomaly making him swallow. His eyes flicked up to meet hers, and she smiled again, that smile seeming to beckon to him.

''Then...why are you still here?'' he questioned bluntly. The students had long shifted their focus away from the two of them, and now no one was paying Gumo and the girl any attention. She shrugged elegantly, arching a delicately curved eyebrow. He found himself staring at her ruby red lips, and hastily he shook his head.

''Why don't you come with me and find out?'' she murmured, her fingers reaching up to stroke his cheek. He flinched, not only from the sudden, unexpected contact, but also because of her skin. Her fingers were freezing cold..._like the touch of Death itself. Like she doesn't belong to the mortal realm. Is she...dead?_

Somewhat unwillingly, he followed after her as she drifted away from the library, walking out of the school. He trailed after her, all the way to the school grounds, and he noticed with apprehension that they were nearing a deserted part of the yard. No one ever went near there - it was said to be haunted. Students who stayed late to study at night claimed to hear footsteps and soft moans, from this corner of the school grounds, in the dead of night.

It was afternoon now, so it looked perfectly fine, but the whispered rumours about this place still set Gumo on edge. There was an old garden shed in this corner of the grounds, behind the school building. The shed was always locked - people said that a murder had happened there once, a mass murder of school students. A murder so terrible that the spirits of the damned haunted this place, demanding vengeance on their killer.

Of course, the school claimed it was just a rumour, but that didn't explain away the footsteps. The soft rustling, the whispers, the lonely moans at night. Gumo himself had heard them before, and had rushed out to see that...there was nothing there. He didn't like this place, especially not the shed - the whole area reeked of death and restlessness.

''Seems deserted enough,'' Miku appeared to be completely oblivious to the eerie atmosphere and Gumo's tension. ''Well. Tell me more about your gift, Gumo. What do you see, exactly?''

He swallowed, casting the shed behind Miku a nervous glance. ''Rings,'' he whispered hoarsely. ''Rings around necks. They start off as light grey, and they slowly darken until death occurs. After that, on their corpses...the rings are black. Black like yours,'' his eyes snapped to her neck, and her fingers reached up, touching the ring.

''Eyes,'' she muttered. ''That's good,'' she continued, almost to herself. ''Maybe too good to be true,'' she looked up, casting him a disbelieving glance. ''Ever since you were young?'' she questioned, this time loudly.

He nodded jerkily, unable to see where she was going with all this. She puffed her cheeks out, and he blinked - it was a strangely adorable sight. Again, he shook his head. He really had to stop thinking like that. He knew nothing about this girl; for all he knew, she was a zombie or something of the sort. If she was dead...

''You have the eyes,'' she murmured to herself. ''I finally found you. That makes things...easy. Then I can have my own reward for my job,'' she smiled, an eerie smile, and he felt the sudden urge to back away from her. A sense of foreboding, telling him that this girl was nowhere as frail and powerless as she seemed. She was out for something.

''What job?'' he asked, feeling suspicious. Her eyes snapped up to him, looking faintly disoriented - she looked as though she had temporarily forgotten all about his existence. Bowing her head, he saw her close her eyes - and then, right before his very gaze, her school clothes disappeared, changing from their white shirt and black bottoms into something else.

All he had seen was a thick, impenetrable white mist around her body, and then it had solidified into...something completely different. He couldn't believe his eyes, couldn't believe what he had just seen, right before his eyes.

She was now clad in a red dress, the red of blood, the red of her lips. It clung to her figure, accentuating her curves and her slim waist. The back was long, touching the ground, and the front was short, covering her thighs. There were black ruffles along the top of the vivid red dress, which covered only the top of her chest, leaving her shoulders bare. Black lace trimmed the front and sides. It was a gothic dress, one that would better fit the Victorian Age.

She also wore a black coat and black boots, which reached all the way up to her knees. The hem of the coat dragged along the ground, slightly too big for her. In her hand, she held a red fan, a red fan trimmed with black lace, just like her dress. She snapped the fan open, holding it against her face to expose only her green eyes, intent and determined.

He was so stunned by the sudden change, he didn't know what to do. He just stood there, as though rooted to the ground, his mind trying to process what had just happened.

Miku laughed softly at the look on his face. ''My job? I was sent here to kill Gakuko Kamui,'' she brought the fan down from her face, her eyes narrowing. ''And now that you know that, I'm going to have to kill you as well.''


	3. Chapter 3

Gumo stared at the girl, who glared right back, a hard glint in her emerald eyes. Emerald eyes just like his. He wondered whether she was joking with him. It had to be a joke, right?

''Kill Gakuko? Kill me...? Why?'' he asked, hating the way his voice sounded so weak. Miku smirked, the fan snapping shut. The sound was startling, and Gumo flinched.

Before he could blink, he found himself thrown against the shed, his back against the cool wood. He swallowed, nervous - fearful of the haunted shed, and of the teal haired girl before him, casually caressing his bare, vulnerable neck with her black tipped red fan.

He felt cool hardness against his skin, and he gritted his teeth as he realised that the fan had deadly sharp metal edges - metal blades, well concealed, perfectly capable of slitting his throat. She could kill him, he realised - the way she said she would. She wasn't joking.

But even though his life was in danger, he couldn't help being drawn to her - the way a mouse was strangely fixated by a snake's stare, right before the snake gobbled it up. Her bare leg, with its pale, creamy skin, reached up against his own leg, the tip of her black boot playing with the hem of his pants. Gumo had to suck in a deep breath - he was an idiot.

He was about to die, and here he was, lusting after his would-be murderer. She wasn't human, he was certain about that - and she probably would have some way to kill him without getting implicated or caught.

Why was he lusting after her? She was beautiful, but not enough that he would be willing to throw away his life just for a taste of those lips...she reached up, those soft, ruby red lips brushing against his jawline teasingly. His eyelids fluttered closed, and against his will, he moaned quietly, moaning out her name, and she laughed huskily. It was a seductive sound.

''You'd make a good pet. Pity I can't afford to let you live,'' she murmured, and Gumo's eyes snapped open as his mind registered her words. His teeth bared into a snarl, furious.

''If you're going to kill me, at least tell me why,'' he seethed. He wouldn't be happy just dying like that - there was no ring around his neck, so why should he have to die? He wasn't supposed to pass on, not without that black ring...but dying wouldn't be too bad, would it? He would get to see his mother again. And there wasn't anything much left for him, not while living.

''Because you now know who I am,'' her lips trailed down from his jawline to his collarbone, and without him wanting so, he shivered. Her hand, the one not gripping the fan, reached up to his face, her fingers sliding down his cheek. ''And humans are not supposed to know...regardless of whether or not they have the sight. The eyes. It is simply not allowed.''

''What are you?'' he breathed out, barely able to force the words out past his lips. Why was he just so damn attracted to her? What was it about this girl which made him feel so helpless, so...needy? She was going to kill him!

''You're going to die anyway, so there's no harm in telling you,'' she breathed, her cool breath washing against his face. He couldn't help inhaling - she smelled like roses, and he needed more. He just needed more of her scent. _She smells so good, _his dazed mind thought.

''Humans know my kind under many names. But maybe the name you would know me best as is the Grim Reaper,'' she whispered, and he stiffened. ''Angel of Death. The beings which collect souls after physical bodies pass away. That's what I am - and that's why I have to kill Gakuko. Because she is about to die.''

''Don't...don't they die because of the rings? The rings indicate their coming demise, isn't it? Why do you have to kill her? Don't Grim Reapers just...collect human souls, after death?''

''Forget everything you thought you knew about my kind,'' she said quietly, her voice sounding almost...sad. And suddenly, he was struck by an urge to hold her close. To bury his face in her long, silky teal hair, to inhale the sweet fragrance of blooming roses. _What's wrong with me? Why do I feel this way?_

''Why do you need to kill Gakuko?'' he asked, in a low voice. He wondered why she still hadn't killed him yet - she seemed strangely willing to draw the conversation out. Did she...not wish to kill him? A flutter of hope went through him - maybe she was reluctant to carry out her threat. Maybe he would escape unscathed.

Or as unscathed as he could ever be. Physically, perhaps he would be fine. But his heart...that was a different case. _Her eyes...her touch...her scent. It's driving me insane. And I still don't understand why I feel this way about a girl I barely know. A girl who threatened to kill me. I shouldn't be wanting her this way._

''Gumo,'' she breathed out, against his neck, and her eyelids lowered sensuously. ''Humans are...resilient creatures. They won't go unless something causes them to leave. Accidents. Illnesses. All these are engineered and orchestrated by my kind. We cause deaths. We do not kill outright. The reason they die...is because of us. We cause the grey rings to turn to black. It is our job, as...Soul Drinkers.''

He frowned at the unfamiliar term. ''What is that?'' he asked, curious. Inwardly, he prayed that he could distract her - distract her enough that he could slip away while she was talking. Though frustratingly, something inside him cried out at the thought of him leaving her.

''The proper name for my kind,'' she sighed. ''We are Soul Drinkers, because that's what we devour. Souls. And now...'' she fingered the edge of her fan, causing him to shudder at the sight. She eyed him, wondering. ''You're a special case. You know about me, and you know about my job. That I was sent here for a reason. So I can kill you, with my own two hands. I do not need to cause an accident for your case.''

Her voice sounded unwilling. That same dreaded sense of hope reared its head once again, and Gumo wondered whether he was being a fool, to hope that she would allow him to flee from her. She sounded like she was someone serious about her job - and he didn't doubt for a second that she was a Grim Reaper...or Soul Drinker, as she called herself. He didn't think that she was lying.

He especially knew, for some strange reason, that Miku wouldn't lie to him. How he was so sure, he had no idea, but he knew he could trust her to keep to her promises - good or bad. He could trust her to tell the truth. ''Why do you have to kill me, then? Just because I know?''

''You know too much,'' she glanced up at him from beneath startlingly long, thick eyelashes. ''And I have a duty to remove humans who know too much about us. If you ever find out about what is life after death...the fact that you have the sight makes you a target. The moment I laid eyes upon you, I knew you could see. And I knew that I had to get rid of you.''

Her hands were on his chest, and they were so small. So dainty. He reached up, covering one of her elegant hands with his own, covering the hand not holding her deadly fan. She didn't resist or pull away from him, but she did shoot him a startled look. ''What's wrong with being able to see? If I kept quiet...and didn't ask any questions...would you allow me to live?''

''I'm not supposed to,'' she whispered. ''I don't want to kill you. I'm...I'm new at this,'' she admitted unwillingly. ''And I don't want to kill anyone, not unless it's really part of my duties. Technically, I have the responsibility to get rid of you, since I stumbled across you. And we're not supposed to allow those with the sight to live. You...can foretell deaths. It's wrong.''

''There are others like me?'' he blinked, shocked. And all along, he had wondered if he was the only one...Miku glanced down, at the ground. Her lips were set into a firm line.

''Yes. And my kind are busy trying to weed out every single one of you,'' she said fiercely. ''Humans are to stay in life. They do not have any need to know of death. They're supposed to stay blissfully ignorant of the deaths they will all eventually face. The old, the sick, the dying...they're all one and the same. They will all disappear, without any trace. No one will ever remember who the dead are.''

''Isn't there an afterlife?'' Gumo questioned. He couldn't help feeling curious, and he wondered if his mother was in that afterlife right now. Miku stiffened, then shot him a look. A look which was carefully neutral, but at the same time, it was almost...pitying.

''There's no such thing as an afterlife. There's a reason why we're called Soul Drinkers. We devour the souls of the dead,'' she said, voice completely emotionless. Gumo froze. ''Why do you think we do not wish for humans to know the truth, about life after death? Because there is no such thing as an afterlife. Once you're dead, you're dead. You'll be dead and gone.''

''What...?'' Gumo forced out weakly. So there was no such thing...as life after death? ''Why do you have to eat the souls of the dead?'' he heard his own voice harden, becoming icy.

''It is our sustenance,'' she looked away. ''Our nourishment. We need souls to maintain our powers. We're a cursed race, cursed by the gods. There used to be an afterlife, but then...the curse happened, and we were reduced to eating souls to maintain our bodies. Our powers,'' her voice faded into a whisper.

''If souls are eaten, then why are you still here? Shouldn't you be...gone?'' he choked the last word out. _I don't want you to die, _the thought floated, unbidden, through his mind, and he scowled, shaking his head vigorously. She didn't comment on that - instead, her green eyes stared right into his own, intent and searching. Searching for something he didn't know.

''The Soul Drinkers are fair. They judge you. There are a series of tests that all newly deceased humans are put through, to see if any one of them are worthy of becoming Soul Drinkers. I passed the entire series of tests. On average, only three people every century pass.'' Her voice was as quiet as ever.

''What kind of tests?'' he asked. If this girl was going to kill him...he gritted his teeth. There was no way he was allowing himself to be eaten by a Soul Drinker. Not even if the Soul Drinker was Miku. He wasn't about to let himself disappear...as though he was worthless. As though he had no reason to exist - like he was no better than a mere food source. He wasn't going to just give up like that.

''I can't tell you.'' Obviously, she would say that. Her hand snapped the fan open again, and this time she held the sharp edged blade dangerously close to his neck. He tried to edge away, but his head hit the wooden shed, and he could back away no further from her.

She was strong, despite her petite frame, and he knew that. Still, he wondered...why wasn't he putting up more of a fight? Under her intense stare, he felt...weak. Helpless. He didn't want to struggle against her - if she were the one to kill him, he would die happy. No. Wait.

He didn't want to die. No matter who his killer would be. ''Is there really no other way?'' he whispered. He swore that he saw her hand tremble just a little, as he asked that question. Her emerald eyes flicked up to meet his.

''No,'' she answered, voice soft. ''I have to kill you. I'm sorry, Gumo. You never did anything wrong. You just happened to be in the wrong place, at the wrong time,'' she bit nervously upon her lower lip. But still, she made no movement, and they stood there, her with a metal blade pressed up against his neck.

''Why didn't any other Soul Drinkers kill me before?'' he mumbled, trying to stall for time as much as possible. She blinked at him.

''Because they never noticed you, nor did you ever notice them. But...I noticed you. And you saw the ring around my neck. So since you know that I'm different from other humans, since you know that I'm technically dead...I'm going to have to silence you. Permanently.''

He closed his eyes, suddenly filled with resignation. ''Kill me, then,'' he murmured. ''If it's really such an important part of your job, then kill me. There's nothing else left for me here, anyway. There's nothing really worth living for. Nothing at all...''

The blade trembled against his neck. He could feel the cool metal against his skin - but then, to his surprise, cold air met his neck as the blade was removed. His eyes flew open.

Miku was breathing hard, her lovely eyes shut. Like his were, earlier. The fan hung limply in her hand, and she ran her fingers through her teal hair. He swallowed. He probably ought to take the chance to run away, but...''Miku?''

He was an idiot. The Soul Drinker opened her eyes, staring right back at him. Her expression was frustrated. ''I can't kill you,'' she hissed, sounding confused. ''I can't...I can't bring myself to do it.'' Her gaze darted away. ''Just get out of my sight right now, Gumo. I never want to see you again, not anywhere outside of school.''

She was letting him go? But why? Gumo felt dazed at the thought, but then he decided not to probe too deeply, in case she changed her mind and ended up murdering him. He turned to leave, feeling lucky to escape this alive.

But his body had ideas of its own. Somehow, his hand reached out, and then his fingers wrapped tightly, almost possessively, around Miku's wrist. Her gaze snapped to him, startled, but before she could say anything Gumo pulled her close and pressed his lips to hers.

He moaned at the sensation of her soft mouth against his, though a part of his brain was yelling at him about how idiotic this was. Why was he doing such a thing? He didn't understand himself, didn't understand the strange attraction he felt towards this girl.

She tasted like honey. Sweet honey, with a hint of caramel. Warm, soft...heavenly. Her lips were full and lush, welcoming his mouth, and his tongue slid out, running against her lips. She was stiff in his arms. From shock? Surprise? Gumo knew that he certainly was feeling shocked - shocked by his body's reaction towards her. He hadn't intended for any of this to happen...what was going on?

Still, she didn't respond, and Gumo found his hands twining through her long teal hair. It was as silky as it looked, and he loved the way it slid between his fingers. Her rose scent filled him, making him feel intoxicated, and he knew that he needed more. More of her touch and her taste. More of Miku herself. He pulled her close against him, and somehow...it felt so right.

Miku tugged herself free of his grasp, her eyes wide with shock. She stared at him. ''What are you doing?'' she spat. ''I...'' she wrapped her arms around herself, and he wondered whether he was imagining the tears which filled her green eyes. ''Leave me alone!''

She disappeared, even though his hands reached out for her, and they ended up managing to grasp only empty air. He stared at the spot she had fled from, then slumped down against the shed, kneeling on the grassy ground. His eyes closed in confusion.

What the hell had just happened?


	4. Chapter 4

_I can't stop thinking about her, and I don't know why. When I think of the way she looked at me, with those tears in her green eyes..._

Gumo shook his head, irritated at himself and his own very inappropriate thoughts. It was a new day. A new start. He was going to completely ignore Miku Hatsune. And she was going to ignore him as well. Wasn't she?

After all, she had said that she didn't want to see him ever again. Not outside of school, anyway. So...she would be trying to avoid him, right? He didn't understand why she never wanted to see him again - perhaps the sight of him reminded her of her failure, in killing him. She was supposed to have killed him, yet in the end she hadn't, and he wondered why.

Why hadn't she killed him? Why wasn't she able to do it? Just because she was new at this? He wondered whether anything would happen to her because of the way she hadn't done her job - and his heart twisted at the thought. Crossly, he shook his head. No, there was no reason whatsoever for him to worry about her.

She was nothing but a girl who had wanted to kill him. She wasn't even human. She was a Soul Drinker - she was someone who devoured souls and brought about deaths of people. So he shouldn't be feeling this way for her. In fact, he ought to be repelled by her...she might kill him at any time, since the Soul Drinkers apparently wanted to wipe out his kind.

His kind, she had called him. As though he was something...unnatural. Him and his ability to see the grey rings around the necks of people, the rings which indicated one's coming demise. He wondered whether there was anyone else out there who could see the rings. He wasn't the only one, so...who were all the others?

''Gumo? You weren't listening to me again,'' Len sighed, knocking into him hard as the bus drove over a speed bump. Gumo blinked, shaking his head. He grinned at Len and Kaito, who were staring back at him, looking concerned for him. And they had reason to be concerned - Gumo usually didn't space out so much.

''Sorry, I wasn't paying attention to your conversation,'' he said cheerfully, and a little obviously. Or as cheerfully as he could manage. Len and Kaito exchanged a look, then shrugged, apparently deciding that Gumo was fine.

''We were asking you, how did your meeting with the new girl go yesterday?'' Kaito smirked knowingly at him, and Gumo stiffened. How did Kaito know? He hadn't told anyone about it.

''How do you know?'' Gumo's voice lashed out at Kaito, and both he and Len blinked, startled by the hostility in his voice. He gritted his teeth - his words had come out harsher than he had intended...they had sounded almost like an accusation. Swallowing, Gumo tried to sound marginally friendlier. ''I mean, I didn't tell anyone that I was meeting her yesterday.''

''It was so obvious, Gumo,'' Len sighed, shrugging off Gumo's earlier snapping. Len was just forgiving like that. ''Everyone around had been staring at the two of you outside the library yesterday. Especially after she forcibly dragged you out. Did she force you go on a date with her or something?'' Len smirked.

Gumo resisted the urge to snort. Him. On a date. With his potential murderer? Not likely. ''No...she just asked me some questions about class and the teachers and stuff,'' the lie slipped out smoothly, and he blinked, surprised by how easily the words had come out. Normally he wasn't such a good liar, and it was usually ridiculously easy to tell when he was hiding the truth. This time...it was rather different.

Len and Kaito knew that he was a bad liar, so that was probably the only reason why they accepted his admittedly feeble excuse - though Len kept giving him curious looks, as though he suspected that there was something more. Unlike Kaito, who usually took things at face value, Len was unusually perceptive.

Later, as they got off the bus, Len fell back a little, behind Kaito, to walk with Gumo. ''Were you telling the truth on the bus?'' he whispered, his cerulean eyes glimmering with curiosity. He hadn't tied up his blonde hair today, and it fell loosely around his shoulders, several unruly strands sticking out messily around his face.

''Of course. Why wouldn't I?'' Gumo shot him a confused look, and Len tilted his head, the same confusion mirrored in his blue eyes. Gumo felt a little nervous - he found it extremely difficult to lie to someone as intuitive as Len was.

''Why would she ask you something like that, though?'' he asked, almost to himself. Gumo shrugged - all he knew was, he couldn't tell anyone the real reason why Miku had sought him out. He couldn't tell any of them what was her true identity...that she wasn't human. That she was no longer alive. She was a Grim Reaper of sorts, and that made her different.

If she had been meant to kill him because her kind feared that he would reveal the truth about what she was, then he would keep quiet. He would give her absolutely no chance, no reason to kill him. If he kept quiet, if he didn't spill any of her secrets...then she would have no excuse with which to silence him, would she? Because he was keeping her secrets for her.

''What kind of person is she like?'' Len suddenly piped up, startling Gumo - he had forgotten that Len was there, he had been so deeply lost within his thoughts. Gumo cocked his head curiously, staring at him. Len was avoiding his gaze, staring resolutely at the front, and slowly Gumo felt his lips tilt up into a smirk.

''Why? Do you have a crush on her, Len?'' Gumo drawled, running his fingers through his light, meadow green hair. Len shot him a look through narrowed cerulean eyes - a warning look which, at the same time, seemed to hold a tiny hint of a plea. His smirk widened. Len really did have a crush on her...but at the thought, Gumo thought he felt his heart sink.

How strange. He wondered why - it wasn't like he liked her. Did he? He remembered the way he had reacted to her touch yesterday, and he frowned a little. That had been weird, but it didn't mean that he liked her or anything. She was attractive, and it had been a while since he had last been on a date. Yes, that was probably why he had reacted so strangely to her touch.

Len's cheeks were turning pink. ''I don't have a crush on her,'' the blonde snapped, slinging his bag further up his shoulder. ''I just think she's interesting. I mean, aren't you interested in her? She's the only survivor of a plane accident where everyone else on board died. She herself was supposed to have died, yet she lived. She's called a miracle survivor. Aren't you curious?''

Gumo arched an eyebrow at him. Curious? He had been, at first. Until she had threatened to kill him. ''A little,'' he admitted grudgingly. But he knew why she was still here - because she had passed the tests and become a Soul Drinker. She was dead, but she was still here. He hoped that Len wasn't interested in her in any other way...Gumo didn't think he would like that. At the thought, he stiffened.

Why would he not like that? It wasn't like she meant anything to him. It was because he was worried that Miku might end up killing his best friend. It was best that Len...and Kaito, didn't get too close to the teal haired girl. Gumo didn't know how she was thinking, and he didn't want to risk his best friends dying at her hands.

Well, at least Kaito didn't seem to be particularly interested in her. The navy haired boy had already disappeared into the distance, since he and Len had been walking so slowly. Carefully, Gumo shot Len a look. The blonde's face was unreadable, for once.

Did Len like Miku? ''Do you like her, though?'' he voiced his question aloud. Len visibly stiffened. ''I mean, it's not like you to care about someone else's past, unless they themselves choose to tell you about themselves...this is the first time I've seen you be interested in someone.''

''I just want to know what having a near death experience is like,'' Len avoided his gaze as the two of them walked into the school courtyard. ''But obviously I won't ask her. It's all too recent for her...and I don't know her all that well. I can't just ask her like that,'' he sighed. ''I need to go for class now. See you later.''

Gumo just nodded in response and turned away, heading off for his own class. He was early, and most people still hadn't reached school yet. Sighing, he entered his classroom and immediately went over to his own table, all the way at the back. Everyone else in class was either sleeping, eating their breakfast or frantically trying to copy friends' assignments.

Gumo had actually managed to finish his homework for once, so he decided to take a nap. Setting his bag down, he slumped down over his table - but the very moment he closed his eyes, he felt this sudden, irresistible urge to look up at the front. Irritated, he did just that, and then his breath caught, his eyes widening at the sight of the girl who had just walked in.

Miku Hatsune didn't look at him even once as she walked all the way to the back of the class to her table, two seats away from his, her walk fluid and graceful. But she drew his gaze, and he couldn't take his eyes off her. His eyes were fixed upon her soft, full ruby red lips, and hungrily his tongue flicked out, running against his own lips. What he wouldn't give to have another taste...to touch her lips again -

Blinking, he shook his head vigorously, gritting his teeth. There he was again. Thinking like that about her. He wasn't attracted to her, not in the slightest, so why was he just so intrigued by her? Her presence drew his gaze unwillingly, and his eyes constantly darted towards her, lingering on her face, her lips, even as he tried to relax enough to go to sleep.

Time suddenly seemed to slow down as it passed by, too slowly for him. Like the clock was taunting him and his restlessness. He was desperate for their teacher to enter the class so that he would have something else to distract him. So that he wouldn't constantly be staring at her. His fingers curled into fists.

_What I wouldn't give to hold her in my arms. To nuzzle into the curve of her neck, under her thick, silky teal hair...to taste the softness of her pale skin. I want to feel her arms around me, holding me tight, her voice whispering my name into my ear. I want her to be mine...wholly and completely mine -_

He hissed, frustrated. His thoughts were annoying the hell out of him, what with his fantasies and such. He shouldn't be fantasizing about her this way! He couldn't take it, and he just wanted to stop being so damn distracted by her. He couldn't like her - she had wanted to kill him before. So she was definitely not very good for his health...or for his sanity.

Against his will, his eyes drifted to her once again. This time, his green eyes met her own emerald ones, and instantly she looked away from him, staring stonily at the front of the classroom. Gumo swallowed, slowly returning his gaze to his tabletop.

He couldn't be sure. But in that one instant when he had met her gaze, he thought that he had seen fear flicker though her lovely eyes.


	5. Chapter 5

_**Solitaryloner: **Yes, this story was inspired by Zombie Loan. But only the black ring thing and how he can see them is the same. I'm certain that everything else is different. The story line isn't the same as Zombie Loan's, definitely._

_I'd appreciate it if people stop saying in the reviews that I got the idea from Zombie Loan without acknowledging that there are differences in my story, because I already wrote on my profile previously that this story was inspired by a manga. I don't intend to follow the plot of Zombie Loan. Thank you._

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''You. We need to have a little talk,'' the words sounded forced, but Gumo's head shot up as he stared at the owner of the voice. The teal haired girl stood before him, her lips pressed together as she looked everywhere. Everywhere else except at him. Gumo arched an eyebrow, wondering what the Soul Drinker could possibly want from him this time. Was she going to try and finish what she had started, before?

''I thought you didn't want to see me,'' he mumbled, looking back down at his table. There was an audible sigh, and then a pair of slender hands slammed down onto his tabletop, startling him. His gaze snapped upwards, and he swallowed at the look on her face - Miku's expression was dark, her emerald eyes filled with a strange mix of reluctance and anger. Had he done something to make her angry?

''I don't want to see you,'' she agreed, the words coming out in a low hiss. ''But my senior and trainer found out about my failure in killing you yesterday. He said, since I was unable to get rid of you, then there would be no need for me to kill you anymore. But I have to make you my partner, when it comes to removing the humans who are near death from the world of the living,'' her teeth bared at him. He blinked.

''Wait. Partner? What are you talking about?'' his own eyes narrowed at her. ''And I don't care about what your senior says. If I don't want to be your partner in killing people, then nothing anyone says can change my mind,'' he looked away from her. ''After all, you don't seem to have any qualms about killing Gakuko Kamui,'' he added, his tone bitter. ''What do you need me for? All I'll do is hinder you in your job.''

There was a soft, humourless laugh, and then a hand yanked on his tie, jerking him up, closer to the Soul Drinker. His breath caught - but it wasn't only from fear. Her lush, forest green eyes flashed with ire as she glared at him, their faces so close that if he leant over just a little bit more, their lips would touch. He felt transfixed by her stare - he knew that she was bad for him, but he didn't want to look away.

''Trust me, I didn't like the idea either,'' Miku snapped. ''No qualms about killing Gakuko Kamui? She's already dead, Gumo. The moment the grey ring appeared around her neck, she was no longer one of the living. Why else do you think the ring appears? The ring tells Soul Drinkers that she's no longer a truly living being. That ring shows up because the body it's on is no longer alive. She's not alive, Gumo.''

''She seems alive...more alive than you are, at least,'' he muttered, disgruntled. Those green eyes further narrowed at him, apparently frustrated by his words. Inwardly, he smirked - he frustrated her? Well, that felt good. She frustrated him no end too, her behaviour towards him and the way she acted. She was a mystery he couldn't solve, and that annoyed him. It was only right he annoyed her too.

Finally, Miku let go of his tie. Gumo glanced around, feeling thankful that there wasn't anyone else around. It was lunch time, but he hadn't felt hungry, instead choosing to remain in class and finish off all his undone homework. His Maths teacher had told him if he didn't finish it all by today, he would call his father. And Gumo didn't want his father to have anything to do with any single aspect of his life.

So he had stayed in class to complete all his undone assignments. He really had no idea where all this incomplete homework had come from - he didn't recall having been assigned any homework for Maths. Either way, he had been sitting here, minding his own business, when the beautiful Soul Drinker had come up to him and started threatening him. Not that he was upset that she was talking to him...

True, he'd prefer it if she was talking to him like a friend, rather than as someone she couldn't stand. As shown by the hostile tone of her voice. But Gumo hadn't asked for any of this. He had just been here, minding his own business. As he had been the past eighteen years. Miku was the one who had come here and turned his life completely upside-down - yet she was blaming him for doing the same thing to her? That was totally unreasonable.

As he stared at her, he felt a shiver run down his spine. And that shiver wasn't one of pleasure, either. There was a sickeningly sweet smile plastered onto her face as she stared at him, and somehow he felt even more frightened of her now, as compared to when she had been threatening to kill him, yesterday. ''So you think that Gakuko should be allowed to remain...untouched, then?'' she asked, her voice dripping with malicious sweetness.

''It's not like she ever did anything to warrant dying so early,'' he argued back, wishing that she would stop smiling so eerily. ''I mean, she's still walking and talking and breathing, isn't she? So why can't you just leave her alone? Just because she has a ring around her neck...why does that mean that she has to die? I'm sick of watching my schoolmates die around me. When I know that they're going to leave, and when I know that I can't do anything about it.''

That smile turned into something more like a grimace. ''You're a fool,'' she said emptily. ''Do you think that humans can change their fates, their destinies? Death is pre-determined. Once you die, you die. Once the physical body starts to rot away, the grey ring appears. And once that ring shows, the soul locked away inside the flesh vessel begins to wither away. We kill the dying body to retrieve the soul which we need for sustenance. In a way, we rescue you.''

''How is killing someone rescuing them?'' he snapped, annoyed by her words. Leaning back in his chair, he folded his arms across his chest, staring at a spot over her head. Miku arched an eyebrow at him, the irritation in her emerald eyes melting away to become...blank. Her expression was blank as she regarded him, her head tipping to one side curiously as she watched him avoid her gaze.

''Ah, you don't know what it's like when a soul is trapped in a rotting body,'' her voice was filled with knowingness. That familiar superior knowingness which irritated him no end. ''I'm doing her a favour by killing her, before her ring turns black. We kill bodies before the ring blackens, because by then it's too late. The black ring means that the soul in the body has either been taken...or it has festered away.''

He glanced at her. ''Didn't you say before that it was the Soul Drinkers who caused the change of the ring from grey to black?'' Curiosity laced his frustrated tone. He couldn't help wanting to know more about the mystery of Soul Drinkers, and what life was like. What was the purpose of living, if after death all that happened to their souls was oblivion? Their souls were all used for the sustenance of the Soul Drinkers.

Did this mean that all humans were leading nothing more than a worthless existence, then? There was a cool laugh, bored and humourless, and then Miku glanced away from him, out of the window. ''We do. We take the souls, thereby turning the ring black. But the ring can turn black of its own accord. And when that happens, it's too late...the soul is lost, even to us. When a dead soul lies in a dead body...yes, you continue existing, but it's a twilight existence.''

''What do you mean by a twilight existence?'' his eyes narrowed at her. Her green eyes slid back to meet his gaze, and she shrugged, that irritatingly knowing smirk growing. He hated that look of smug superiority in her eyes - like she knew so much more than he did. Yes, perhaps she was a Soul Drinker, and she knew more than he could ever hope to imagine. But she didn't have to flaunt that knowledge.

''You really want to know what it's like, if we don't kill someone before their ring turns black?'' Miku asked, her voice hardening. ''Very well. Today is the day I was supposed to kill Gakuko, but since you want to spare her life so much, I shall do as you wish. Tomorrow night, meet me at the shed in school. At midnight. And you'll see exactly why we do what we do. Promise me one thing, though,'' her teal hair whipped around as she stared intently at him.

''What do you want from me?'' he answered, running his fingers through his green hair. ''You've made it plainly obvious before that you didn't want to have anything to do with me. Why, what made you change your mind? Just because your senior told you to make me your partner? I don't think so. There's something else, isn't there?'' he regarded her closely, and he knew he wasn't imagining the flicker of fear which had run through her vivid green eyes.

Fear...fear just like the kind he had seen, this morning. He wondered what was it that she saw in him that frightened her so much. If Soul Drinkers were immortal, then there wasn't anything which should frighten them. Was there? Quickly, though, the fear was wiped away, and she shot him an arrogant smile. ''You think too highly of yourself,'' was what she said in reply. ''Promise me that after this, you'll come with me to meet my senior.''

''What for?'' he drawled, though wariness made its way to his heart. Her senior...what would her senior want with him? Would her senior want to kill him, since Miku hadn't been able to kill him yesterday? ''Is your senior out to kill me, since you were unable to do so? Because I think that I'm too young to die. Especially since there isn't a grey ring around my neck...not that I've seen one, so far,'' his voice turned cool.

The fan she used as a weapon shot out, against his neck, and he tensed as he felt that familiar cool blade rest against his skin. There was a dark look in her eyes as she glared at him. ''Do not speak of that incident, ever again,'' she hissed at him, voice darkly furious. ''As for why he wants to see you...I don't know. But he says that he has something to ask you, the one who can see things he shouldn't be able to...''

''So is he out to kill me? To finish the job you were unable to carry out?'' he asked spitefully. There was a brief, stinging pain as the fan pressed deeper against his neck, then he felt something warm start to run down his skin. Blood? Her intent gaze shot to his neck, and then her tongue flicked out, running hungrily against her ruby red lips. He had to suppress a shiver at the sight of that little pink tongue.

Damn, despite the way she was threatening him again, he was still foolishly attracted to her, to someone who was out to make him suffer. His attempts to deny that strange attraction, through the stinging barbs he shot at her, were apparently not working. ''I think I'm perfectly capable of killing you right now,'' she murmured, her voice husky and sensuous. ''Tell me that you want me to kill you. In the most painful way imaginable. Say it to me.''

''I...I want you to kill me,'' the words slipped out, even as he tried to reel them back. Why was he doing what she ordered him to do? ''I want you to kill me as painfully as possible. I want you to turn me into a grotesque work of bloody art. You'll do that for me, won't you, Miku? Because you're my Soul Drinker...you know it. We both know it, and you can't run away from that, no matter how much you try. You can't run away from me. Or I from you.''

His mouth had to be drunk, because none of what he had just said made any sense to him. It apparently made perfect sense to Miku, though, and she jerked back, that same sense of fear flickering through her green eyes once again. ''I can run away how much I want to,'' she hissed, her eyes darting between him and the window. ''I won't let you catch me. Don't think that just because you know, I'll hesitate to kill you.''

He wanted to say more, but he was frozen, unable to speak, thoughts whirling confusingly around his head. The words he had just said...where had they come from, and why did it seem as though Miku knew exactly what he had meant? When he himself hadn't understood what he had been saying? And...why had he said exactly what she had told him to say? _She's my Soul Drinker? Running away...what does that mean? Where did those words come from?_

Stepping away, she disappeared from his sight, leaving him as confused as ever. He didn't understand the strange conversation that they just had - he only understood one thing, throughout the whole exchange. He understood that he was supposed to meet her at midnight tomorrow, at the haunted shed. Then, she would show him why killing people was a favour to them. Why death was a blessing.

Another thing that he had managed to understand...was that Miku was his Soul Drinker? But that didn't make any sense. The only reason why he knew that his words were true was because she had just denied it - she had denied that she was his. And something about not hesitating to kill him, just because he knew - even though he didn't actually know anything. He didn't know what she knew.

So was she his? Or was she not? If she was...then why, and what did that mean? Most of all, where had those unfamiliar words that he had just said come from?


	6. Chapter 6

No one noticed the boy as he hid in a corner of the room, watching Gumo and Miku interact. A light smirk graced his lips as he watched them talking to each other - the Soul Drinker was obviously agitated, whereas Gumo...well, the human seemed extremely confused.

Not that the boy was making any personal comment. Where those words had come from, Gumo was asking? They had come from within himself, of course. The boy was rather surprised that Miku didn't wish to admit that the two of them were bound together...their tie was obvious. Though she kept trying to run away from her pet human. The boy's smile widened - all the better for him.

He wasn't surprised that Miku wasn't able to recognise him. He was in his human form. Most Soul Drinkers couldn't recognise him in his human form...though, for the life of him, he simply could not understand why. It wasn't like his appearance changed in the transition between human and Soul Drinker. Maybe it was because of how he reeled in his aura of power, when he was in his human form.

He chose to stay in mortal form on the mortal plane, because for now he was remaining incognito. It wouldn't do him any good to be recognised, especially by the little Soul Drinker. She was still new to this. Anyway, even if he had been in his Soul Drinker self, he doubted that Miku would recognise him - she hadn't seen him during her Judgement. He had been hiding in the shadows, watching the new Initiate.

His job? Well, it wasn't really a job. As though anyone would dare to set him to something as menial as a job. He was here because of his own curiosity...about Gumo. Gumo was a strange human. He had the Sight, which was strange enough in itself - but he had more than just the Sight. He had so much more...enough that the boy had told Miku's guardian to tell her to stop trying to kill the poor boy.

The boy wasn't going to let his quarry die, not so soon. Not before he found out what exactly the Sighted mortal could do, and what was the true extent of his capabilities. There was potential in this human, potential he had been able to sense ever since he had first laid eyes upon Gumo. If only there was a way to tap upon all of that pure, unadulterated power...

There was a rustling sound behind him, and then a soft sigh. The boy turned around briefly, then let his lips tilt up into a pained smile. Not again. He didn't think that he had the time...or the patience, to deal with much more of this. ''Let me guess. You're here to watch her again. You do know that eventually, you'll get to meet her in due time? Once your training is officially finished, we'll see how you two match up.''

The newcomer snorted from behind him. ''Yes, my Liege,'' he said, his voice just dripping with thinly veiled sarcasm. ''Pardon me for this observation, though. As if you yourself weren't watching her. Ever since she has appeared, you've spent more time watching _her..._instead of the original mortal you had been interested in,'' the other boy ended dryly.

The first boy narrowed his eyes, shifting around to ensure his shield wouldn't be seen past by the agitated Soul Drinker. She was still talking to Gumo, who had a sullen look on his face. The boy knew that inside, however, Gumo was still confused about what he had just said. ''Are you questioning me?'' the boy hissed, turning around to glare at the other one. The other boy simply shrugged, a smirk crossing his lips.

''Me? I wouldn't dare, my Liege,'' he bowed deeply, though he tilted his face up so that his cool gaze could meet his. ''As if I would ever have the audacity to ever challenge what you say. All I'm making is a simple observation, and you know that as well. It was never in my intentions to make it seem as though I was trying to question your authority.''

Something flickered out of the corner of his eyes, and swiftly the first boy's gaze snapped around, eyes narrowing. Miku had disappeared, leaving behind an extremely confused Gumo. He nodded, satisfied, then beckoned to the other boy. Both of them faded away into the shadows, leaving the room so that they could drop their shields - shielding their presence from unwanted eyes took much energy from them.

''Down to business,'' the first boy said smoothly, brushing the black fabric of his cloak with his palms. There was a long silver chain wrapped around his wrist, stretching from left shoulder to left wrist. It twined around his lean arm, looking almost alive as it wound around him lovingly. ''You do know that you're supposed to be staying up in the Halls, don't you? You haven't officially passed your training module yet.''

Both of them were currently in said Halls. The Halls where the Soul Drinkers resided. It was their residence, where all of them lived when they weren't in the mortal world, carrying out their soul retrieval duties. He smiled bitterly - it used to be just Soul Retrieval. Now, they had to feast on the essences they collected. He didn't like it, but he detested the idea of disappearing even more. Souls were their nourishment.

''I know,'' the second boy muttered. He was dressed in an old Victorian style dress jacket, along with a pair of dark brown pants, so dark it was almost black. The white under shirt he wore beneath that jacket was pure white, the colour of freshly fallen snow, but it was ripped and shredded, especially around his torso, strips of fabric hanging in loose shreds. ''But I wanted to see her. I...I have to see her.''

As he spoke, he fiddled agitatedly with his fingers, clenching and unclenching his fists. Absent-mindedly, he stroked the back of his hand, his fingers trailing across his right knuckles. The first boy's eyes slanted across to him. ''Now you've seen her,'' he said sharply. ''Are you satisfied now? You're a new Initiate, not fit for Retrieval yet. As you know, disobeying the trainers can mean...punishment.''

''Ah, but you're not a trainer, are you...my Liege?'' the reply was sly. ''You wouldn't report me now, would you? After all, your authority far surpasses that of the trainers. What you say is law, and no one dares to disobey you.'' The first boy stiffened, his cloak billowing around him to whip against his body. The silver chain slid down his arm, tightening just a little. Holding him back from snapping.

''True, but it does not mean that you disregard our rules,'' he snapped. ''Know your place. You would have died, were it not for my intervention. Don't forget that if it were not for me, you wouldn't be here now. You'd be festering away in the stomach of some other Soul Drinker. Just because I saved you does not mean that I will give you preferential treatment,'' his eyes narrowed. ''Understood?''

''Yes, my Liege,'' the boy dipped his head down, sinking into a deferential bow. ''But...I just wanted one little glimpse of her. You wouldn't deny me that, would you?'' His eyes met his own. ''It is, after all, my responsibility...to ensure that she is safe. Whereas you...you watch her simply because you're interested in her,'' he smirked. ''And not in the same way you are interested in the Sighted mortal.''

The first boy bared his teeth into a snarl. ''Don't push my limits,'' was what he finally said, turning away sharply, the cloak sweeping behind him as he whipped away. ''You have completely no idea how I find that particular Soul Drinker,'' his voice trailed off. ''I am the son of our ruler,'' he said emptily. ''And it is expected of me to find a bride. Soon. I don't have anyone in mind, not really..not yet.''

''No one save for her, you mean?'' came the dry reply. The boy twisted around, the chain unwinding from around his arm as it hovered in mid-air, eager for blood. The second boy, however, didn't back away, standing calmly as he regarded the son of his ruler. The first boy could not help but admire his blind courage - perhaps it had not been a mistake to pick him out for a second round of Judging.

He was just like her. Bold, challenging, a passion for surviving in their eyes - he reminded him of her. Miku Hatsune. The latest initiate into the ranks of the Soul Drinkers...if you didn't count this boy, of course. But then, this boy wasn't exactly like her either. There were differences between them. It would be fascinating to see how these particular two would match up, as partners in the field.

The first boy smirked, satisfied. ''If I do allow you to be paired up with her...then what would you do? I can allow you to talk to her, to be released before your training is done. Physically, everything is finished - we just have to wait for your graduation completion. How would you like it if I requested for them to bypass all that ceremony, and send you straight out into the world? Do you want that?''

The other boy's eyes brightened, but just as quickly they narrowed in suspicion. ''Why would you offer that, my Liege?'' he questioned, and rightfully so. ''It would be foolish to not check for what you want in return, before I agree to your deal,'' he muttered in a low voice, almost as though he didn't want him to hear what he had said. The first boy shrugged.

''Nothing. Other than...you leave me with her,'' he tilted his head as the boy's head snapped up, eyes filled with alarm. ''Don't look so worried. I'm not going to eat her up,'' he turned away, letting his slender fingers run down the sides of his room. The room was hewn out of old stone, rough in some places and smooth in others. The rock was marbled, too - white with pink streaks in one spot, simple grey granite in others.

''Why?'' the other boy pressed on curiously, trying to meet his gaze. He ignored that probing stare. ''After all, you claim that you aren't interested in her, not that way. Didn't you just, my Liege? Unless you changed your mind about her...'' he continued hesitantly. The first boy blinked, then slowly he shook his head, running his fingers through his thick silky hair.

''I just want to observe her. She's an interesting new Initiate, and I think I'd enjoy watching her progress,'' he said slowly. ''Of course, it'd help to alleviate some of my boredom as well...'' he tilted his head backwards, so that he could meet the other boy's gaze. ''Perhaps you'd want to watch with me?'' he offered slyly. ''You'd want to make sure that she is perfectly safe, after all. I know you would not want her hurt.''

''No...it's fine,'' curious eyes met his, and then the second boy glanced away. ''Though I wonder what are your actual motives. You spend all your time in the mortal world, watching the one with the Sight. Why are you watching her, though? Just because you find her progress...interesting, so to speak?'' there was a faint hint of protectiveness in his voice. The first boy shrugged casually, choosing not to answer.

Instead, he told him, ''What I do is only for the good of the Soul Drinkers. We all want to break free of our curse, as you know. And I have reason to believe that this mortal might be our means to do so...'' his voice hardened. ''I'm returning to the mortal plane now. If you know what is good for you, you would remain here, and you won't follow me down. Got that?''

There was a terse nod, and then the first boy smiled slowly, satisfied that he had made his point. Fading away, he returned to the earlier classroom on the mortal plane, searching carefully for either Gumo or Miku. He would continue watching them, as he had been before the other boy had interrupted. Gumo was still seated in his chair, scowling down at the table - the boy smirked. Miku Hatsune probably frustrated the human no end.

She frustrated him too. And he was a Soul Drinker...if he didn't understand her, someone of his own kind, then how was a mortal expected to know what she was thinking?


	7. Chapter 7

Gumo hesitated, his eyes darting back and forth, before he took a running leap and jumped over the school gate, using his momentum to swing himself inside the compound. He gritted his teeth as he landed on the other side, bending his knees to absorb the impact of landing.

As he had agreed with Miku yesterday, he was here. In the school. At midnight. And now, he would be heading towards the haunted shed, to see exactly why Miku should have been allowed to kill Gakuko. He swallowed, a sudden wave of trepidation flooding him - was all of this a big mistake? Perhaps he shouldn't have come...

Bad enough that he had to come all the way back to school, at midnight. Now, he couldn't see any signs of someone being in school. The whole compound seemed eerily deserted, and the lights were all switched off, save for the street lamps outside. The school building loomed over him, imposing and forbidding. A frowning sentinel, warning him to stay out.

He shook his head. He was thinking too much about things. The school was nothing but a mere building, nothing more than that...trying to keep that in mind, he turned away from the main steps and headed towards the school backyard. He wondered whether Miku would be there, at the shed, as she had said she would be. Maybe this was nothing but a prank...

No, he didn't think so. He shivered, shoving his hands into the pockets of his black hoodie. It was cold outside, and the chill penetrated deep into his bones, past his clothes. He wondered why it was so very chilly tonight - it was uncharacteristically cool, for this time of year.

Gumo was rather sure that Miku wouldn't stand him up. Something was most definitely going on with Gakuko - she hadn't come to school today. Perhaps, on any other day, he would have just thought that she was ill. But she was supposed to have died yesterday. That she hadn't come to school this morning...well, this was just too much of a coincidence. He couldn't shake off the feeling that something was very wrong here.

''You actually came,'' the voice, seeming to issue from nowhere, made Gumo jump, his heart thudding rapidly in his chest. He glanced around - there stood Miku, dressed in her old-style Victorian clothes. The scarlet dress, trimmed with black, waved in a gentle breeze that he couldn't seem to feel. The tealette dragged her booted foot across the ground, and he winced at the crackling sound of crumpling dead leaves.

''Why, did you think that I wouldn't dare to?'' he retorted. Though he almost hadn't come. Not because he was too frightened to do so - it was because he wasn't sure whether this would be worth the effort of getting out of the house. He didn't want to be stopped by his father, and be questioned about why he was going out so late. It would have been very troublesome for him.

The look that she shot him when he said that indicated that yes, she did assume that he would be too much of a coward to come. At that expression, a flicker of anger went through him - he would be sure not to give her any more chances to look down on him. Perhaps she was an immortal Soul Drinker, and compared to her he was nothing more than a weak mortal - but it didn't give her the right to be disdainful.

The fan that she held, in her right hand, flicked open, scarlet trimmed with black - just like her dress. With the fan, she casually fanned herself, like she couldn't care less about his opinions of her - and he supposed that she really did feel that way, about him. ''Are you here to see what happened to Gakuko, or not?'' she asked, voice filled to bursting with impatience. ''We don't have all night to do this, you know.''

''Do what?'' he asked, immediately feeling a little mediocre as she shot him a look, filled with disbelief. Well, she couldn't blame him for not knowing. He wasn't a Soul Drinker, not like her - this would be the first time he would be facing any of these kind of...problems. Before he had met her, he hadn't even known of the presence of Soul Drinkers. Before he had met her, he had believed in an afterlife...

''Kill Gakuko, of course,'' she said, sounding matter-of-fact. ''Then what else do you think we're doing here?'' she blinked innocently at him. ''Wipe that shocked look off your face. This was going to happen, whether I had waited or not. Ultimately, I was going to have to get rid of her...'' her voice hardened. ''All you managed to do was to make this more troublesome. And far more painful for all of the parties involved.''

''Wait. How did you even know that Gakuko would be here?'' he protested, still feeling a little dazed from her sudden proclamation. ''She didn't even come to school today. This morning. How could she possibly be here, on the school grounds? I mean...wouldn't she be elsewhere? Hiding from you, perhaps?'' he couldn't help adding that, his voice dripping sarcasm.

Miku ignored the implied insult. ''People like her always return to the place they had spent the most time in, the place where they had forged their most, and closest, ties. For Gakuko Kamui, that place is this school. She had spent far more time in school than at home, and she had many friends in here. It would make sense that she's hiding in this compound - even if she had chosen not to return to school, this morning.''

He noticed that Miku kept using the past tense, to talk about Gakuko. ''But...why do you have to kill her now?'' Gumo couldn't stop himself from blurting out. ''Why do you seem so insistent on getting rid of Gakuko? Do you just enjoy killing that much or something?'' The words came out of their own accord, and immediately Gumo bit his tongue, wishing that he hadn't just said that. Miku's expression looked rather...strange.

''Enjoy killing?'' she echoed, her voice odd as well. ''Do you really think that I enjoy doing this job, Gumo? Killing people? Even though technically, this can't be called killing, since these people aren't really alive anymore...I still don't like this. I don't like this feeling of guilt I feel, whenever I take a soul. But I...we...have no choice. If we don't kill the undead, we run out of souls and we disappear. And the undead...''

''Undead?'' Gumo repeated, feeling puzzled. This was the first time he had heard her use that word to describe anyone. Anything. She nodded, her green eyes suddenly acquiring a distant look. He couldn't help but notice, whenever she wasn't snapping at him as though he had done her some great wrong, she was...very attractive. He hastily glanced away to hide the sudden warmth he could feel in his cheeks.

''The undead. Those dead bodies, with their dead souls...they're the undead, Gumo. They kill. They're mindless, soulless - the only thing they want to do is to kill, because they can't bear the thought of others being alive, when they themselves lead a twilight existence,'' she nodded, as if talking to herself. ''Could killing those who are not truly alive be considered murder, then? Do you think I like doing that?''

His gaze drifted back to meet hers, and he noticed that she returned his stare intently. She seemed to be waiting for an answer to her question, and nervously he swallowed. If he thought about it, really thought...he couldn't agree. He didn't think that she liked killing, or cold-blooded murder. Even if it was necessary. Because if she had enjoyed it, then wouldn't she have killed him, while she had the chance?

The wind suddenly picked up around them, making Gumo shiver, even through his warm hoodie. The cold was biting, and it froze deep into his bones. In all honesty, he was severely under dressed for this kind of cold - it wasn't supposed to be so cold, not at this time of year. On the other hand, despite her thin clothing, Miku seemed completely unaffected by the cold, instead still watching him intently.

Further proof that she wasn't human, perhaps. Trying to avoid her probing gaze, he glanced down at the ground, watching the dead leaves swirl across the empty yard. The wind picked the dead leaves up, tossing them around like insignificant pieces of scrap paper, the leaves twisting and fluttering around his ankles. ''Maybe you should just prove what you need to, then we can get out of here,'' he muttered.

There was an answering sigh, and he glanced up to see that Miku's attentions had drifted elsewhere. ''Might as well. We're getting nowhere, standing around like this.'' Gumo blinked, unused to the wistfulness he could hear in her voice - but then she looked back at him again, a familiar arrogance in her emerald gaze. ''I'll show you exactly what I mean by the undead, Gumo. Let's go look for Gakuko now.''

She turned and, without any further ado, she set off for the back of the school. Near where the haunted shed was. Gumo cast a nervous glance around the yard, the stories of the restless dead which haunted this place running around his mind. Shaking his head to distract himself from all the ghost stories, he hurried after Miku, not willing to be the only person out in the front yard. The deserted yard gave him the creeps.

Miku didn't seem scared at all - and he supposed that he knew why. If this school really was haunted, as everyone claimed, why would any ghosts come out and meet her? Ghosts were supposedly the souls of the restless dead, were they not? And if Soul Drinkers used human souls as nourishment...well, if Gumo had been a ghost, he would have done his best to stay away from Miku, as much as possible.

He frowned as another thought occurred to him. Was it possible for ghosts to exist, then? Wouldn't the Soul Drinkers have devoured all wandering souls? He blinked as he noticed Miku turn around to glance at him - then he realised that he must have voiced his question out loud. Miku was wearing a small frown, her forehead creasing just a little - but despite that, she was still undeniably attractive. He had to admit it.

''It is possible for ghosts to exist,'' she said slowly, like she was thinking deeply. He listened to her, finding the sound of her voice a welcome distraction from the eerie silence of the deserted compound. ''Sometimes, we kill the body, but the soul manages to elude us, somehow...or we simply forget to devour it,'' she smiled wryly. ''You don't need to worry, though. I sense no lost souls in this school.''

His eyes widened. ''But...the rumours...'' he ran his fingers through his hair, feeling startled by this new revelation. ''People always hear footsteps and such at night, if they ever stay around in school until that late. Or they hear soft moaning. The sounds of whispered conversations, but there is no one else around except for them...even I heard all this before,'' he admitted, glancing away from her.

''Your own over-active imaginations, perhaps,'' Miku shrugged, looking unconcerned. ''The mind is a powerful force, you know. If you're frightened enough, you'll believe anything. The most harmless little thing can morph to become a menacing monster, within the mind. Usually, most of the ghosts and such that people claim to see...they are little more than products of people's own overwrought nerves.''

He remained silent for a while, expecting there to be some kind of pointed jibe about his lack of knowledge and experience, but there was none. Instead, all Miku did was turn away from him and face the front. He frowned - he wasn't used to her being so...not hostile, towards him. This new treatment of him...he couldn't say that he didn't like it, but at the same time he found it all very strange, that her attitude had changed.

''Why are you being so nice to me, all of a sudden?'' he asked, feeling suspicious. He noticed her visibly stiffen, and abruptly she stopped in her tracks. He didn't pay attention when she froze, and as a result he walked right into her. Hastily, he scrambled away from her - but to his surprise, she didn't say anything, or react in any way. She didn't even seem to notice that he had walked straight into her.

She seemed to be thinking again, and he felt rather...nervous, while he waited for her to say something. Anything. He noticed that her slender fingers had curled up into fists, by her sides, and he wondered what had provoked her this time. His question? Surely not. It had been a mild, innocent question - he hadn't intended to offend her, or to probe into her business. Surely she wasn't so silent because of his question -

''Because I decided that trying to attack you with jibes that are far above your level of mortal intelligence, was no more than a waste of my energy,'' she finally said, before setting off again. Gumo could feel his lips thinning as he frowned - this was the Miku he was used to. The one who bit back with sharp, sarcastic remarks, the one who seemed to think that he, as a mortal, was completely useless.

Which, personally, made no sense to him. Why did she think that human beings weren't worth anything? She might be an immortal Soul Drinker now, one of those angels of death who claimed and collected human souls upon the physical body's demise - but she had been human once, as well. Before she herself had died. Didn't she feel any lingering affection for the species that she had once been a part of?

Judging by her stiff posture, evidently not. He rolled his eyes - actually, he much preferred this wary, hostile side of her. At least he knew how to deal with her then. When she hadn't been hostile, earlier...when she had been wistful and almost...nice, to him, he hadn't known what to do. What to say or how to react. How was he supposed to know what to do, when she had never once treated him as an equal, before?

His eyes traced her back - her posture was stiff and rigid, her long teal hair sliding down her back. She wasn't wearing her black coat today, and he could see that her Victorian dress was a backless one. Her hair brushed against pale, bare skin, and he had this sudden, almost irresistible urge to just reach out, to run his fingers against the curve of her back. To let his hands trail across bare skin, to her waist -

Again, she stopped, but this time he managed not to walk into her. She held a hand out, wordlessly warning him to keep back, and Gumo noticed that they were near the shed. She glanced around quickly, a warning look in her emerald eyes, before she quietly slid forward, closer to the shed. Her other hand, the one holding on to the fan, flicked the said fan open once again, its deadly sharp blade glinting.

''I know you're there, Gakuko,'' Miku called out, drumming her fan against her upper thigh. Gumo retreated into the shadows, feeling hideously helpless...even though he knew that Miku knew how to handle herself, and that he would be more likely to hinder than to help her. Still, as he watched from his sheltered little corner, he couldn't help noticing how vulnerable she seemed. How...delicate she really was.

Then his eyes widened. The bushes near the shed rustled a little, then out stepped a figure. It had Gakuko's long purple hair, and it was dressed in the school uniform - but her face. It had turned yellowish, soft skin turned dry and brittle, stretching tight over jaundiced eyes and brutally sharp cheekbones. Her fingers reminded him of claws, elongated and wizened looking, nails sharp and long. She was thin.

How could all this have happened in just one day? The transformation was shocking - a perfectly healthy, pretty girl had turned into...well, one of the walking dead. Her once glossy purple hair looked dry and lifeless, like her skin was. She was little more than a pile of bones, walking around in a loose sheet of papery, brittle skin. Gumo swallowed - was this what one of the roaming undead looked like, then?

''Why didn't you kill me, Soul Drinker?'' Gakuko rasped, her voice a soft, sibilant hiss. He shuddered at the sound - her voice had once been vibrant. Full of life. It was now little more than a twisted mockery of that vibrancy. As she turned a little, Gumo almost gagged - most of her teeth appeared to be gone, leaving nothing but a black, gaping hole where her mouth was. Perhaps...killing her would be merciful.

He hated to admit that Miku was right, but she was. Seeing how quickly Gakuko had withered from her normal, bubbly self to this deformed...thing - surely dying would have been a better existence than this one. Neither truly alive, nor truly dead - maybe the Soul Drinkers were right, to do their duty of killing those whose time was up. No matter how old or young they were.

He felt guilty about this. About dooming Gakuko to this kind of existence. What was is that Miku had said? A dead soul, trapped within a dead body, a twilight existence...more guilt flickered through him. _When that happens, the soul is lost, even to us. _What would happen to Gakuko's soul now, since her soul was lost to even the Soul Drinkers? He didn't know.

''Why didn't you kill me before?'' Gakuko asked again, her voice a little louder than the previous time. She tried to drag herself closer to Miku, her dry purple hair floating around her skeletal face, in the chilly wind which had started up again. Gumo winced at that movement - Gakuko literally had to drag herself, as though her thin, limp legs weren't working properly.

''I wanted to,'' Miku answered, her voice calm. ''But someone wouldn't let me. If you're out to kill, to make others suffer like you do now, then seek him out. I had no part to play in abandoning you to this half-life. If you want to take revenge upon the world of the living, then start with the one who led to all of this. The Soul Drinkers take no responsibility for the foolish acts of another mortal being.''

''Who?'' Gakuko hissed, sounding impossibly reptilian. Her blue eyes, once so full of life, now sunken and hollow, momentarily flashed a vivid crimson. ''I will find him, this human who dared to interfere in my mortal lifespan, and when I do, I will rend him from limb to limb,'' her eyes darted up to meet Miku's. Gumo began to feel rather nervous. ''Who is it?'' she repeated.

Miku turned, pointing directly at him. Gumo cursed under his breath as Gakuko's yellowed gaze followed her pointing finger. ''There he is,'' Miku sang, her eyes gleaming with wicked intent. ''Now, why don't you go and get him?''


	8. Chapter 8

_Damn it. Damn everything. Damn myself and my own stupidity. Damn you, Miku Hatsune!_

Gumo gritted his teeth, running as fast as his feet could carry him. Gakuko was hot on his heels, and he knew that if he turned back to look, he would be able to see that undead horror, reaching out for him with yellowed claws, wearing a twisted snarl on her face. After Miku had told Gakuko about Gumo, about how he was the one who had caused all this...

Well, like any other sane man, Gumo had sprinted out from his hiding spot, instantly trying to flee to a safer place. He had to wonder why Miku had done that - tell Gakuko where he was hiding, he meant. Was it because she wanted him to know, through the worst way possible, why it was important that the Soul Drinkers did their jobs? Given Miku's sadistic nature...he thought that might be possible.

Earlier, while he had been watching Gakuko and Miku talking, the purple haired girl had seemed so...crippled. So useless. It had been an obvious struggle for her to even move. But now, as she chased after him, determined to tear him from limb to limb, she seemed to have lost the stiffness that came with death. Instead, her movements were elegant and graceful, just like the predatory gait of some large wildcat.

_Because she's the predator, and you're her helpless prey. _Gumo couldn't help feeling thankful that he had brought nothing along with him tonight - he didn't have anything to encumber him, then. He risked looking back, and his blood froze as he realised that Gakuko was even closer to him now than she had been, half a minute ago. He swallowed his fear, his gaze snapping back to face the front.

He had to get the hell out of here. His spirits lifted as he saw the school gates, coming steadily into view - surely Gakuko wouldn't be able to leap over the gates? Or perhaps she wouldn't want to leave the school compound. After all, what was it that Miku had said? That the...undead...always went back to where they felt the most at home. Maybe Gakuko wouldn't want to leave the place she now called home.

Fear and adrenaline lent him speed, and he pushed himself harder than ever. He had always been a fast runner, and he won track championships on a regular basis - but then, he had never had to run from a monster before. When he had been running for the track and field club, there had never been an undead creature on his heels, just salivating to kill him and...what did these monsters do to people?

Gumo had no idea, and he didn't intend to find out. As he neared the school gates, he took a running leap, and he smiled a little in relief as he reached his hand out, to the top of the gates - but then, he felt something wrap around his ankles, and he was being tugged away from the gates, back to the ground. Panic filled him, causing his heart to beat even more erratically then it already did - he looked down.

Then he gagged. Gakuko Kamui was still some distance away from him, and the thing that was wrapped around his ankles wasn't her hand...it was a long, slimy thing. Just like a bruised, purplish black snake. And he knew exactly what it was...it was her tongue. Her tongue further tightened around him, preventing him from struggling out of her hold. His frantic struggling got even more frenzied as she neared him.

She took her time to walk to him, watching him try to squirm away from her tongue - it was as though she was taunting him. Torturing him with the fact that she could take as long as she wanted to, and Gumo wouldn't be able to run away. He wrestled with the thick muscle wrapped around his ankles, ignoring the sliminess he could feel on his hands whenever he touched the tongue. It was so long...

How had she managed to fit all that into her mouth, and still talk at the same time? Perhaps that was why she spoke in such a breathy, rattling hiss. Gakuko finally towered above him - he was lying spread-eagled on the ground, unable to run away - and stared down at him. Her once lively blue eyes, now yellowed and sunken, regarded him fiercely. He swallowed, knowing that she really would kill him.

''I hath youth,'' she gargled. Her tongue was still wrapped around his ankles, preventing his escape, and he supposed that this stopped her from enunciating all her words properly. He thought that she was trying to say 'I hate you'. If it had been any one of his friends, sticking out their tongues and trying to sound like total idiots, Gumo would have laughed at them. But this...this wasn't the same as that.

This was different. The situation was the same - Gakuko wasn't speaking properly, her tongue hanging out of her mouth. But instead of finding her way of speaking amusing, Gumo was...frightened. Even though she sounded like she had a terrible lisp, Gakuko was still terrifying, and the lisp didn't take the edge off the bitter sting of her words. He knew what she wanted to do - she was going to kill him. Painfully.

The tongue slithered away from him, finally leaving his ankles free - but before he could scramble up and run away from her, she had planted a foot on his chest, preventing him from getting up. She was much stronger than he was, and he couldn't move under her weight. Her jaundiced eyes narrowed at him, her once pretty face twisting into a scowl. It made her look more...dead than she already did.

''Why?'' she asked coldly. ''Why did you have to interfere with my path? I'd rather die than have to spend the rest of my life in this eternal twilight existence...'' the words were all spoken with an unnatural, reptilian hiss, and it lent an edge of dark threat to her words. Gumo tried to crawl away from beneath her, but she pressed down even harder, and Gumo actually felt himself sinking a few inches into the ground.

The undead girl - no, she couldn't be called a girl anymore. She was...Gumo didn't even know what he could use to describe her - leant down, her dry, crackly purple hair brushing against his chest. From this angle, her hair looked like dead grass...dry, lifeless and withered. ''I'll be kind and kill you now,'' she breathed, her reptilian voice making the words sound even more threatening. ''Tell me what it's like up there.''

She drew back gracefully, preparing to plunge those sharp yellow nails into his heart. Gumo closed his eyes, bracing himself for the pain he knew was going to come - but then, in the end it never came. His eyes quickly flicked open as he wondered what was taking Gakuko so long...and he saw the underside of a red fan, blocking him from seeing anything. There was a hiss, and then Gakuko's foot was off his chest.

He sat up, spluttering, as the red fan was likewise whipped away. Miku sprang away from him gracefully, her long teal hair falling gently around her shoulders. She had suddenly popped up, out of nowhere - Gumo hadn't seen Miku at all, while he had been trying to get away from Gakuko. He blinked as he realised that Miku must have prevented Gakuko from stabbing him in the face, by using her fan.

The fan was snapped shut, and Miku drew herself back as Gakuko leapt at her, snarling the whole while. The undead monstrosity's movements were deft and quick - it was almost as though she...wasn't dead. Wasn't a zombie. He contrasted her movements now with those of earlier - they were just so different. Was it because she was now on the offensive? Gumo didn't exactly want to know why, though.

He was just thankful that Gakuko's attention appeared to have been diverted from him, for the time being. Slowly, so that he wouldn't be noticed by the fighting pair, he picked himself off the ground. Miku was doing well, he noticed - her fan was a scarlet blur as she continuously parried against Gakuko's attacks. Actually, from his vantage point, it looked very much like a cat-fight between two schoolgirls...

He held back a hysterical laugh. No, he couldn't lose his grip on himself now. He retreated from the still fighting pair, edging closer and closer to the school gate. They still hadn't noticed him, and when he finally reached the gate, he sighed in relief. Now, all he had left to do was to scale the gate, and he would be out of this place. He could leave the two of them to their fight, and he would make his own way home...

But as he wrapped his fingers around the ornately wrought bars of the iron gate, he hesitated. Slowly, he glanced back at the fight - Miku was still holding her own, and she actually looked as though she was enjoying the fight. As he watched, Gakuko swung out wildly at Miku, and the tealette dodged gracefully to one side, before returning the blow with one of her own. She managed to wound her opponent.

A cut opened up Gakuko's jaundiced skin, and he watched in a mixture of curiosity and revulsion as a black, oily liquid poured out from her body. Gakuko didn't actually seem to care about the injury, instead bearing down harder on Miku. Even from here, Gumo could see Miku's eyes glinting with a knowing light - as though she not only expected this to happen, but she also was greatly looking forward to it. He swallowed.

_She won't appreciate my interference...and anyway, it's not like she needs any help. I'd be more likely to hinder her than actually be of any use. _But still, he couldn't help being worried about her. He didn't understand the worry he felt for her - he didn't understand his own confused feelings about everything which was going on. After all, Miku had threatened to kill him before. Why was he so concerned for her?

This unexplainable concern for her safety...it was as unexplainable as his lust for her was. This worry was just like his attraction to her - it made no sense, yet it was so strong that it seemed to defy all logic. All he knew was, he couldn't possibly just run away from here, like he was some kind of coward. He couldn't just leave Miku behind and care only about his own safety. He couldn't...just leave her alone.

For he was concerned about her. That suffocating worry was the only thing preventing him from scaling the school gates and fleeing to the safety of his own home. He knew that, no matter how hard he tried, he wouldn't be able to leave. Not until he knew that Miku was safe as well. It was probably the fault of his damn conscience, and muttering under his breath, he cursed that he even had a conscience.

It was because of this conscience that he had wanted to speak up for Gakuko to begin with. He hadn't found it fair that she had to die, and have her soul devoured, at such a young age. If he hadn't had a conscience...if he had just left her to die...things would no doubt be different now. For one thing, Gakuko wouldn't be here, looking like a zombie from some lousy horror film, doing her best to kill him and Miku.

Sometimes, he wondered what was the point of having a conscience, if the only thing that having a conscience did was bring harm upon himself, and to all of the people around him. Now, his conscience was endangering him even further - because he knew that, if he left Miku before he was sure that she would win, he wouldn't be able to walk more than three steps away from the school gate. He was that worried for her.

As he stood at the gates, thinking to himself, he didn't notice Gakuko changing her mind about fighting Miku - evidently, the Soul Drinker was too skilled for her to kill easily. Instead, Gakuko changed her direction and hurtled towards him - and he didn't even know, being as lost in his thoughts as he was. Miku, noticing the way Gakuko had glanced away from her, looked in the same direction Gakuko was staring.

She realised what Gakuko intended to do, the same moment Gakuko began to run. Instantly, without thinking, Miku shifted from her spot to stand before Gumo, just as Gakuko slashed her yellow nails right at where Gumo's stomach had been. As it was, the nails tore through the skin of her left side, and Miku cried out in pain - it was a deep wound, and she could feel the poison on those dead nails, leaking into her.

Gumo whipped around at the sound of her cry, his green eyes widening in shock. ''Miku -'' he started, but then he saw the wound. Instantly, his hands reached out to support her, but Miku pushed him away, using one hand to clutch at her side. Crimson blood was pouring freely, pouring out past her fingers, but she ignored all that blood, adjusting her position so that she was standing protectively before him.

''Don't get in my way, human,'' she hissed at him, right before she stepped back, slashing her fan across her face. Another wound was opened in the undead creature's arm, a wound that was at least as severe as Miku's own, but Gakuko ignored it once more. Gumo saw Miku's eyelids squeeze shut as she hissed, her bloodstained fingers pressing tighter against her side. The blood continued pouring out of her body...

Why had she saved him? Gumo drew back from her - she had taken a blow meant for him, a blow that would have killed him. He should have paid attention to his surroundings, and not have gotten lost in his thoughts like that...as a result, Miku was hurt. He wondered at the way he could feel his heart clenching in his chest. At the thought of her being hurt because of him...was this feeling guilt? Or something else?

Miku was now obviously at a disadvantage - unlike Gakuko, she could feel the wound in her side, and he noticed the way she paled, unsteady on her feet as the blood continued to gush out. She hadn't gotten hurt again, not yet - but he knew that she wouldn't have been in such a precarious position if she hadn't been trying to protect him. Gumo wondered whether he should try to escape from this place.

As though she could hear his thoughts, Miku spoke. ''No. Don't,'' her voice was weak. ''Right now, her target is you. She fights me only because she wants to get to you. If you escape, she will give chase, and I'm in no state to follow you right now,'' she winced again, ducking swiftly as Gakuko's nails slashed down at her again, those hollow blue eyes sparking with evil intent. Gumo swallowed at that warning.

She was hurt because of him...yes, he was definitely feeling guilty now. His eyes widened as he saw a gap appear in Miku's defence - he opened his mouth, trying to warn her, and at the same time Gakuko took advantage of the opening, striking out at Miku's unprotected, injured left side. He stood there, helpless, unable to do anything to save her, wondering what would happen if Miku got hurt again -

Suddenly, Gakuko's head was sliced cleanly off her shoulders. Gumo's eyes widened as he stared at the head, falling from her severed neck. The hand which had been about to slash at Miku twitched, stopping in its tracks, before the whole headless body collapsed in a heap to the ground. Miku sank back, her fingers clenched tightly around her side, and reflexively he reached out, supporting her in his arms.

She was soft...but he didn't allow himself to focus on that, for now. He could see the blood, pouring hot and sticky out of her side in a tide of vivid crimson, and that worried him. ''Is she okay?'' a new voice asked, cool and distant. Gumo glanced up from Miku, his gaze meeting the blood-red gaze of a newcomer. He was sheathing a sword, and Gumo watched the onyx black blade sliding into its scabbard.

The man had silvery white hair, and eyes the strangest shade of red. It was the same shade of red as blood...he was tall, and his skin was pale - as pale as Miku's skin was. At the sound of the man's voice, Miku's eyelids fluttered open a little. ''Senior Sukone,'' she managed to whisper, her voice sounding weaker than ever. Gumo winced - clearly, she had been hiding her pain earlier, during the fight with Gakuko.

Gumo assumed that this man was her senior, then. Clearly, he was the one who had killed Gakuko for them, with that strange black sword. ''Thank you,'' Gumo muttered. ''For saving us just now...'' he cast a glance at the lifeless body, its head some distance away from the rest of the corpse. Gakuko's face was still twisted into a snarl, and he shuddered - even in death, she couldn't manage to find peace...

The silver haired man cast the body an impassive look. ''I was only doing my duty. And getting my student out of trouble,'' he arched an eyebrow as he stared at Miku. ''Clearly, she has gotten herself quite an injury, this time. She will not die from it,'' the man added, at the look of concern on Gumo's face, ''but it will take her quite a while to recover. I've always told her, be more careful. Does she listen? Never does.''

''Who are you?'' Gumo asked bluntly. The man seemed to pause, staring at him thoughtfully. Gumo wondered what this man must make of him - this green haired boy, obviously a mere mortal, holding on to a gravely injured Soul Drinker who was on the brink of collapse. He was rather sure that this man knew who he was, since apparently, he was the one who had told Miku to stop trying to kill him...

''My name is Teiru Sukone,'' he grinned slightly. ''Of the First Division of Soul Drinkers. The senior of Miku Hatsune...and as for you, I know who you are,'' he tilted his head. ''You're the one who knows far too much for his own good.'' Gumo watched as Teiru's fingers stroked lightly against the hilt of his thin sword - he flinched at the sight. He had seen how easily that sword had been used to slice someone's head off...

That head still rested in a pool of oily black liquid, the same liquid which had seeped out of Gakuko's wounds. Gumo suppressed a shiver. ''Maybe I do know too much,'' he murmured. ''What are you going to do about that then, Soul Drinker?'' Gumo's grip on Miku tightened, as she stirred feebly against him. He couldn't help worrying about her, even if her senior didn't seem to be very concerned about her health.

Teiru's red gaze softened. ''I do care about her. It's just that she can't keep relying on me forever...'' Suddenly, Miku was out of Gumo's arms, and she was resting in the Soul Drinker's hold. Gumo blinked, startled - and a little unhappy. ''I'll take her some place to recover later. But for now,'' those red eyes seemed to bore into Gumo, ''I need to talk to you.''


	9. Chapter 9

Gumo sat cross-legged on the couch, holding on to a steaming cup of tea. The silver haired Soul Drinker sitting opposite him smiled slightly.

''You look...wary, Gumo,'' Teiru said, tilting his head. Gumo glanced at him, then down at the cup of green tea in his hands. ''I didn't poison the tea, if that's what you're worried about,'' he added casually. Gumo arched an eyebrow, glancing back up at the man. He gestured down at the tea, clearly asking Gumo to drink it.

Gumo stared at the pale green liquid. Finally, he sighed, lifting the cup to his lips. Tilting his head back, he drank some of the hot liquid, ignoring the way it scalded his tongue. He was currently in the Soul Drinker's residence, where both Miku and her senior lived - a very big, ridiculously ostentatious mansion at the outskirts of town.

''So,'' Teiru started, watching intently as Gumo placed the cup of tea back down on the table, ''we have plenty to discuss, you and I. First of all, there's the matter of you...knowing about our existence. Soul Drinkers. By right, Miku should have killed you when she first saw you. We are not meant to let humans know about our existence. You...are a strange liability.''

''If that's the case, why did you tell her to stop trying to kill me?'' Gumo replied, his eyes fixed on the tea before him. He didn't want to meet the gaze of the Soul Drinker. This man, Teiru Sukone...he was nothing like Miku. There was something about this man that set Gumo on edge. There was a dangerous vibe to him...something which said that he was truly lethal.

''Because someone else asked me to stop her. My higher-ups. The prince. Whatever he says goes,'' Teiru shrugged, raising his own cup of tea to his lips. ''I didn't ask why, if you're interested,'' he added, noticing the look on Gumo's face. ''I am simply a subordinate, and I do not question my orders. You are none of my business, Gumo.''

''Prince...?'' Gumo echoed. There was royalty amongst the Soul Drinkers? Teiru nodded, his expression faintly bored. ''So there is someone in your world who is considered royalty. And you all have to listen to him,'' another nod, this time accompanied by a look of curiosity. ''You really are like an army,'' Gumo realised. ''The Soul Drinkers. You said...First Division, right?''

Teiru closed his red eyes, smirking, before he shrugged. ''I said I'm part of the First Division, that's true,'' he said simply. ''There are Five Divisions in total, and we, as Soul Drinkers, are split into each division based solely on ability. The First Division consists of the commanders, you could say. The highest authorities. We, as First Division, answer to only the two royals.''

Two royals? ''Two...'' Gumo murmured. ''You mentioned there was a prince. Who's the other royal, then?'' he glanced up, meeting Teiru's red eyes. His crimson gaze was narrowed at him, and Gumo resisted the urge to shiver. The man was remarkably intimidating. Idly, he wondered how Miku was doing now, up in her room...

Earlier, Teiru Sukone had transported them back here, with no more than a simple touch. Gumo supposed that was how the Soul Drinkers travelled. After all, he had seen Miku pop out from seemingly nowhere before. The silver haired man had proceeded to strip the young tealette - much to Gumo's discomfort, since he was still in the room at that time - and then he bandaged her up, leaving her to rest upstairs.

Gumo shook his head slightly. Normally, as a boy, he wouldn't have gone against the chance to sneak a peek at a half-naked girl, especially since she was so pretty. He knew he wouldn't have been able to help himself. But Miku...her wound was so serious, he couldn't tear his eyes away from the gaping injury in her side. Red. Spilling crimson blood, just like a waterfall...

He knew her bandages would be soaked by now. His eyes narrowed - why did he care? He wasn't sure about himself. She was just a girl who had tried to kill him once, not too long ago. He had no business caring about her. It was a surprise why he didn't even dislike her. Maybe his curiosity about her was self-damaging.

He was too damn curious for his own good.

''A king. The prince's father. That's all,'' Teiru replied shortly, forcefully jerking Gumo out of his thoughts. Gumo blinked, registering what the man just said - father? Soul Drinkers could have children? But weren't they...well, dead? ''He was his son before he died, and since they both ended up as Soul Drinkers, the king still acknowledges him as his son,'' Teiru added, before Gumo could ask. Slowly, he nodded.

''Why are you Miku's mentor?'' he asked now, reaching forward to pick up his tea again. The steaming hot liquid had cooled off a little, and now it was just warm instead of scalding hot. He took a sip - it tasted like...well, water. But different, at the same time. He didn't exactly know how to describe the taste of tea. It was remarkably bland, but at the same time, it was flavourful. He didn't know what it truly was.

Teiru chuckled. ''Why? Does seeing her with another man make you feel jealous, human?'' Gumo stiffened at those words. The silver haired man continued, like he didn't notice Gumo's abnormal reaction to what he said. ''I am her mentor because...she is a gifted child, and they needed a gifted mentor to guide her along. She is a very special addition to us.''

''Gifted, huh,'' Gumo murmured, swirling his cup around. The liquid in the cup showed him his reflection. He looked troubled. There was an uncharacteristic frown on his face, and instantly he looked away from himself. He didn't want to know why he was unhappy. Just because of what Teiru said...but that was stupid. He was not jealous. She had tried to kill him before...

''Yes. She's gifted. I'm gifted. And you're gifted. We're all gifted, aren't we,'' the words sounded sarcastic, coming out of Teiru's mouth. ''And you...you are the most special amongst us all. I've been a Soul Drinker for over two centuries, and this is the first time I've stumbled across a mortal with the Sight...'' Teiru smiled. It wasn't a nice smile. Gumo looked away from him.

''Well, I don't have anything else to do here, so I might as well head back home,'' he muttered, setting the cup down again. ''Thank you for your hospitality, Teiru...'' he made to rise from the couch. Teiru coughed, catching his attention.

''Leaving so soon?'' the man sounded stricken. ''You shouldn't go yet. Miku will miss you if you are not there when she wakes up...'' slowly, his lips tilted up into a smirk. It was the look of a man who knew far more than he was letting on. Gumo resisted the urge to scowl at him - he wanted to stay alive for a while longer. ''You should at least go up and see her first. Only a heartless man would leave her without saying goodbye. She saved your life, you know.''

''I know that,'' he answered quietly. Teiru just tilted his head again, his frown becoming a tiny smile. ''I...I'll go up and see her then, I guess. Just for a short while,'' he hesitated. He really didn't like the sly look on the Soul Drinker's face. ''Are you hiding something from me?''

''There's nothing to hide,'' came the reply. The silver haired man laced his fingers together, propping them under his chin. ''Besides, if I wanted to hide something from you, I wouldn't tell you to go up and see her,'' he pointed out, making Gumo feel a little dumb. ''You are her acquaintance, are you not? I know enough about humans to know that they do not leave those who have saved their lives without thanking them first. You haven't even done that yet.''

''I can't thank her if she's unconscious,'' Gumo pointed out baldly. Teiru arched an eyebrow, before he jovially shook his head. Gumo had no idea what to make of this man. He was like a dangerous puzzle, both friendly and deadly at the same time. He didn't know what to say, what would offend the man, and what would cause him to lose his head. Teiru Sukone...

''She's not unconscious anymore. She woke up a little while ago. I sense it,'' the Soul Drinker tipped his head backwards, staring up at the ceiling. ''Mind you, I'm not forcing you to say anything to her,'' Teiru added. ''If you really want to leave without saying anything, I'll just tell her about how you're nothing more than an ungrateful little brat, and she shouldn't have risked her life trying to protect you,'' the man beamed cheerily at him. Gumo twitched.

He was so infuriating. When he phrased it that way...''I'm going up. I'm going already,'' he said loudly, wondering why Teiru wanted him to go up to Miku's room so much. The man continued smiling. Gumo paused, looking back at him. ''Who are you to Miku, really?'' he asked quietly. ''Are you just her mentor? Or...are you more like her guardian? A parent of sorts, perhaps?''

''Guardian...'' Teiru echoed. Something flickered across his face, so quickly that Gumo couldn't be sure what it was. ''I suppose you could say so. She's my first ever student, you know. None of the other Soul Drinkers dared to take me to be their mentor...she's special,'' for a moment, his red eyes softened. ''She's like a daughter to me, and if she ever gets hurt...'' Teiru's gaze met his, ''I will hunt that person down myself.''

The warning sounded like it was aimed at him. Gumo flinched - a second later, the threatening aura around Teiru lifted, and the man smiled again, waving his hand. ''Go on,'' he said jovially. ''I'm sure you want to go home as quickly as possible, so just get this over and done with, even if it's only for the sake of politeness. Then go home. You still have school tomorrow!''

''It's not just for the sake of politeness,'' Gumo muttered, making his way up the stairs. ''I really am grateful to her. If she hadn't taken that blow for me...'' he sighed. ''I wouldn't be here now, that's for sure,'' he mumbled, more to himself than to the silver haired man. Teiru whistled, drawing Gumo's attention again.

''Did you ever wonder why she was willing to take the blow for you? I mean, Miku was meant to kill you as well, but she failed...I know this girl, and she's real good at holding a grudge. It would have been easy to let that undead girl get rid of you. You aren't Miku's responsibility, you know,'' Teiru said thoughtfully. ''She could just let you die. Nothing will happen. She didn't disobey our prince, after all,'' he shrugged.

Gumo's fingers tightened around the railing of the stairs. ''Why are you telling me all this?'' he struggled not to snap. He hated this. Was he confusing him on purpose? Gumo was trying his best not to think about it. _Indeed. Why did Miku take that blow for me? I thought...I thought she didn't like me. _And she ended up getting wounded in the process. But she always told him that he was nothing but a mere mortal...

''Think about it,'' came Teiru's cool response. ''I just want you to think, really. There's a reason why she did what she did, you know. And I want you to accept responsibility for what you started with her. I don't give a damn about what she thinks, if she keeps pushing you away she's going to end up hurting herself, and if she gets hurt I'm the one who's going to suffer,'' his voice faded into a low mutter. Gumo stilled.

''What do you mean by that?'' he asked. ''What was that about...her pushing me away? There is no pushing whatsoever. Okay? I never wanted to be near her, and I sure as hell don't want to accept responsibility when I didn't do anything. I didn't sleep with her, if that's what you meant,'' he muttered, looking sharply away from Miku's guardian. His cheeks had warmed. Dammit.

Teiru chuckled. ''I know you didn't. If you had touched her, I would know, and I would kill you for touching my student,'' his smile was icy cold. ''Or I would torture you until you're near death, and let another person come in to really kill you,'' he added, making Gumo wonder who this other person was. ''There are a hell lot of people who care about this girl, you know.''

''You have a Miku complex,'' Gumo muttered. Then he blinked - suddenly, something black whooshed past him, and then a black sword was impaled in the wall before him, the blade quivering less than an inch away from his nose. He swallowed. Looking around, he stared at Teiru - the man was sipping at his tea. He hadn't appeared to move a single centimetre.

But Gumo knew better. ''She is my student, and I care about her welfare. If you think I care too much, you should see the other man,'' Teiru placed the cup down. ''Now, I suggest you get a move on before my sword decides it hasn't had enough blood tonight,'' calmly, he raised his hand. The sword shifted out of the wall, darting through the air to return to his hand. The blade left behind a gaping, jagged hole in the wall.

Gumo swallowed, and decided to do as the man said. He made his way up the stairs, to one of the doors on the first landing - he still recalled where Miku's room was - and slowly, he reached his hand out. After a moment's hesitation, he knocked on her door. There was no response, and Gumo bit his lip. Perhaps he ought to leave. She was probably still lying unconscious in bed. Turning around, he left -

''Come in,'' her voice suddenly called out. She sounded weak and drained, but it was her, and Gumo didn't know whether he felt happy or disappointed, that she responded to the knock. Hesitantly, he twisted the doorknob, letting himself into the room. His eyes immediately sought her out - she was lying in bed, as he had expected, but her eyes were open and alert.

''Gumo...'' her eyes widened at the sight of him. He fidgeted, not knowing what to say. Finally, he just decided to approach her. The tealette's gaze never left his as he walked towards her. He swallowed, not liking the awkwardness here. Her green eyes - they were so much like his own - pierced him, carefully neutral.

''Thanks,'' he finally muttered, after a few more moments of silence. ''For taking that blow for me,'' he added, at the look of confusion on her pretty face. At once, her gaze cleared, and her expression became neutral once more. Slowly, she pushed herself up so that she was leaning against the headboard, wincing as she did so. He tried to stop her, but she looked steadily at him, and he found that he couldn't move.

''It was nothing,'' she murmured when she was finally up in sitting position. ''That blow wasn't anything. Nothing more than a cut,'' she said dismissively. Gumo arched an eyebrow at those words, knowing that she was plainly lying - he had seen the wound in her side, and he knew it was much, much more than just a mere 'cut'.

''Really,'' he said, voice flat. ''It looked pretty nasty, though. And if it was just a cut, then why do you have problems with even sitting up in bed?'' her eyes widened, and she opened her mouth. To protest, probably. He cut across her. ''No, don't try to lie. I heard the way you were gasping, just now,'' he paused. ''Why do you keep trying to pretend that you're strong?''

''I am strong,'' she tried to snap, but her words came out as tired. ''There's no pretending about it. If you're quite done, then...'' she turned her head away, her teal hair falling over her face, hiding it from his sight. ''Then I'd like to be left alone,'' she muttered, sounding disgruntled.

''Wait,'' he said sharply, causing her to look up at him. ''I...your mentor,'' he sighed, running his fingers through his hair. ''I was told to take responsibility for something, just now. He said you were pushing me away, and I don't know what he means. All I understood was that I've done something to you, and he wants you to give in and accept me. Or whatever it is,'' he looked away from Miku, his cheeks flushing.

That...it sounded like a confession of some sort. But no. He wasn't confessing. He didn't like her, after all. He was just repeating what Teiru had told him earlier. Miku was looking down at her blankets, away from him. She hadn't reacted to his words yet, and Gumo sighed. ''Look, I don't know what your mentor means, I didn't want to get mixed up in all this Soul Drinker crap and have people trying to kill me. But...I know that you're important. So...tell me what it means.''

She still didn't say anything. He stepped closer to her, so that he was right next to her. ''Just tell me what the hell is going on here. Please,'' he closed his eyes, his fingers clenching into fists. ''Give me a chance, a way to make some sense out of all this, okay? If I have to take responsibility for you, tell me why. What I'm supposed to take responsibility for. Miku?''

He felt something tug on his hand, and his eyes flew open - suddenly, he was falling, and then he was right on top of her, his face so close to hers that he could feel her breath against his face. Instantly, his cheeks flushed with warmth. _She smells nice...and her lips are so close..._his mind thought dazedly. ''Miku?'' his lips moved. They felt disconnected from his brain. Her green eyes met his. Her eyes...so intense and pretty.

''You talk too much,'' she breathed. He didn't know why she said that, and he was just about to ask her why, when suddenly she closed the distance between their lips, her mouth meeting his. His eyes widened as he felt her kissing him. She was...they were...what was she doing...

His eyes closed. He kissed her back. And a part of him rejoiced - _because you know. You've always known...you've wanted to do this for a long time. And now, you won't let her go._

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_**Solitaryloner: **__So I've finally updated. You know, I really hope more people will review this. I know this story has readers, but I haven't gotten any reviews for the past few chapters. This poor story feels so neglected._

_So please? This story needs more love~! Just a word or two. Something. So long as no one makes any comparisons to Zombie Loan again. I'm counting on my lovely readers then~!_


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